Barack Obama

Obama was born in Honolulu, Hawaii to Barack Obama, Sr. (born in Nyanza Province, Kenya) and Ann Dunham (born in Wichita, Kansas). Barack Hussein Obama (born August 4, 1961) is the junior United States Senator from Illinois and a member of the Democratic Party.

Obama grew up in culturally diverse surroundings. He spent most of his childhood in the majority-minority U.S. state of Hawaii and lived for four years in Indonesia. Obama delivered the keynote address at the 2004 Democratic National Convention while still an Illinois state legislator. Since announcing his candidacy in February 2007, Obama has emphasized ending the Iraq War and implementing universal health care as campaign themes.

As a member of the Democratic minority in the 109th Congress, Obama co-sponsored the enactment of conventional weapons control and transparency legislation, and made official trips to Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. Obama's parents separated when he was two years old and later divorced. His father went to Harvard University to pursue Ph.D. studies, then returned to Kenya, where he died in an auto accident when the younger Obama was twenty-one years old.

Friday, March 07, 2008

TODAY'S HIGHLIGHTS
Senate Votes For Safer Products
The Senate yesterday approved the most far-reaching changes to the nation's product safety system in a generation, responding to recalls of millions of lead-laced toys that rattled consumers last year.
(By Annys Shin, The Washington Post)

Michigan and Florida Have Democrats in a State
(By Dan Balz, The Washington Post)

Gunman Kills Eight at Seminary in Jerusalem
Attack Could Strain Already Faltering Peace Negotiations
(By Griff Witte, The Washington Post)

Radios Don't Work In Metro's New Cars
Portable Alternative's Reliability Is Debated
(By Lena H. Sun, The Washington Post)

NASA Wary of Relying on Russia
Moscow Soon to Be Lone Carrier of Astronauts to Space Station
(By Marc Kaufman, The Washington Post)

More Today's Highlights

POLITICS
Michigan and Florida Have Democrats in a State
As Sens. Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama competed through more than 40 contests over the past two months, Michigan and Florida remained on the sidelines, barred from participating in the Democratic presidential nomination process because they violated party rules. Now, with neither candidate...
(By Dan Balz, The Washington Post)

Senate Votes For Safer Products
Enforcement Would Get Major Boost
(By Annys Shin, The Washington Post)

Letters to Lawmakers May Be Tied to N.Y. Bombing
Writer Mentions Early-Morning Blast at Times Square Military Recruiting Station
(By Spencer S. Hsu and William Branigin, The Washington Post)

Jurors in Rezko Case Hear From Both Sides
Lawyer Points to Alleged Co-Conspirator
(By Peter Slevin, The Washington Post)

GOP Campaign Arm Missing Cash
FBI Investigating Treasurer Fired Over Lack of Auditing
(By Paul Kane and Dan Eggen, The Washington Post)

More Politics

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NATION
Anti-Terrorism Efforts Hailed
Islamic extremists have been targeting Europe instead of the United States because the Bush administration has made a domestic attack much more difficult through improvements in U.S. traveler screening and border security, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said yesterday.
(By Spencer S. Hsu and William Branigin, The Washington Post)

Senate Votes For Safer Products
Enforcement Would Get Major Boost
(By Annys Shin, The Washington Post)

Letters to Lawmakers May Be Tied to N.Y. Bombing
Writer Mentions Early-Morning Blast at Times Square Military Recruiting Station
(By Spencer S. Hsu and William Branigin, The Washington Post)

A Canyon-Size Age Difference
New Study Adds 11 Million Years
(By Joel Achenbach, The Washington Post)

NASA Wary of Relying on Russia
Moscow Soon to Be Lone Carrier of Astronauts to Space Station
(By Marc Kaufman, The Washington Post)

More Nation

WORLD
Colombian Rebels' Ties to Chávez Come Into Focus
BOGOTA, Colombia, March 6 -- A trove of correspondence recovered during a raid on a guerrilla camp is providing a rare window into how Colombia's largest rebel group has drawn closer to Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez in an effort to acquire money, arms and the political recognition the organiza...
(By Juan Forero, The Washington Post)

Gunman Kills Eight at Seminary in Jerusalem
Attack Could Strain Already Faltering Peace Negotiations
(By Griff Witte, The Washington Post)

'An Earthquake That Shifted the World Around Us'
Beyond a Disapproving Kingdom, Untested Saudi Rappers Find Transformation and Victory, of Sorts, at Hip-Hop Contest in Dubai
(By Faiza Saleh Ambah, The Washington Post)

Twin Blasts Kill at Least 39 in Baghdad Commercial Area
(By Joshua Partlow and Zaid Sabah, The Washington Post)

Expansion Issues Divide NATO; Rice Urges More Troops
(By Glenn Kessler, The Washington Post)

More World

METRO
Bill Would Put Limits On High-Cost Borrowing
RICHMOND, March 6 -- State legislators agreed Thursday to the nation's most stringent reforms of the payday loan industry in hopes of reducing the cycle of debt for financially strapped customers who repeatedly take out high-interest, short-term loans.
(By Anita Kumar, The Washington Post)

Immigration-Linked Prostitution Cases Pose Challenge
Pr. William Crackdown Highlights Complex Legal Issues
(By Theresa Vargas, The Washington Post)

Metro's Steady Navigator
Catoe Gets Good Marks as Crisis Manager in Tumultuous First Year
(By Lena H. Sun, The Washington Post)

A New Grip on Talent
Popularity of Mixed Martial Arts Is Benefiting Wrestling, as Well
(By Ryan Mink, The Washington Post)

Low-Key Death Penalty Debate for Senate Panel
(By Annapolis Digest, The Washington Post)

More Metro

BUSINESS
Carlyle-Managed Fund In Default to Lenders
Carlyle Capital, a publicly traded financial fund managed by the Carlyle Group, failed to meet lenders' minimum requirements on its $21.7 billion portfolio yesterday, sending ripples through markets.
(By Thomas Heath, The Washington Post)

Real Estate Live
(Maryann Haggerty and Elizabeth Razzi, washingtonpost.com)

Investors Dump Securities From Fannie, Freddie
Mortgage Sector Strongholds Falter
(By David S. Hilzenrath, The Washington Post)

Senate Votes For Safer Products
Enforcement Would Get Major Boost
(By Annys Shin, The Washington Post)

Reputed Global Arms Dealer Arrested
Russian Accused of Supplying Weapons in Africa, Mideast
(By Dan Eggen, The Washington Post)

More Business

TECHNOLOGY
Radios Don't Work In Metro's New Cars
The radios in Metro's highly publicized new rail cars are not compatible with the agency's troubled radio network, so train operators must rely on handheld radios to communicate with the system's control center, officials said.
(By Lena H. Sun, The Washington Post)

Security Fix Live
(Brian Krebs, washingtonpost.com)

Features Added to iPhone
Apple Courts Business Users; Developers Gain Toolkit
(By Connie Guglielmo, The Washington Post)

Anti-Terrorism Efforts Hailed
Chertoff Says Security Improvements Thwart Extremists
(By Spencer S. Hsu and William Branigin, The Washington Post)

More Technology

SPORTS
As Stevenson Evolves, So Does His Game
Of all the stories explaining why the watered-down Wizards have been able to stay afloat, DeShawn Stevenson's defines his team the most.
(By Mike Wise, The Washington Post)

NFL's Goodell Proposes Crackdown on Cheating
(By Mark Maske, The Washington Post)

Louisville, Which Can Do It All, Now Is Set to Play for It All
(By Camille Powell, The Washington Post)

A New Grip on Talent
Popularity of Mixed Martial Arts Is Benefiting Wrestling, as Well
(By Ryan Mink, The Washington Post)

GW's Rice Is Dismissed From Basketball Team
(The Washington Post)

More Sports

STYLE
Indelible Impressions
NEW YORK, March 6 An elephant appears on-screen, projected in stunningly crisp black-and-white. Near him on a bench sit six blind people, complete with dark glasses and white canes. One by one, they approach an animal they've heard about but cannot see, then explore it with their hands.
(By Blake Gopnik, The Washington Post)

March of the Celebrities: Too Many Stars to Take In
(By Amy Argetsinger and Roxanne Roberts, The Washington Post)

Hollywood's Bugged Over Wiretaps
Trial of PI Pellicano Begins With More Crackle Than Pop
(By William Booth, The Washington Post)

NPR Leader Out After Board Clash
Ken Stern's New Media Forays Rankled Public Radio Affiliates
(By Paul Farhi, The Washington Post)

'Miss Pettigrew': A Flick to Brighten Anyone's Day
(By Ann Hornaday, The Washington Post)

More Style

LIVE DISCUSSIONS
The 'Lost' Hour
Join Liz Kelly and Jen Chaney, both obsessive "Lost" fans, try to get to the bottom of the show's mysteries. Bring them your questions, comments and theories (no matter how far-fetched) about just what the heck is going on.
(Jen Chaney and Liz Kelly, washingtonpost.com)

The Washington Capitals
(Tarik El-Bashir, washingtonpost.com)

On TV
Reality, Non-Reality and Everything In-Between
(Lisa de Moraes, washingtonpost.com)

Real Estate Live
(Maryann Haggerty and Elizabeth Razzi, washingtonpost.com)

At the Movies With John Anderson
(John Anderson, washingtonpost.com)

More Live Discussions

Political Entrenchment
THE ABSENCE of competitive congressional districts takes a toll on the political process. As one keen observer of the matter told us yesterday, with "polarizing, tough issues" such as immigration or the war in Iraq, members of Congress are "worried about taking a rational position" because they f...
(The Washington Post)

Fixing the FDA
Lack of funding inhibits crucial drug inspections abroad.
(The Washington Post)

A Sporting Issue
D.C.'s interests should dictate a decision on a soccer stadium.
(The Washington Post)

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