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.

Saturday, March 01, 2008

TODAY'S HIGHLIGHTS
Soaring Food Prices Putting U.S. Emergency Aid in Peril
The U.S. government's humanitarian relief agency will significantly scale back emergency food aid to some of the world's poorest countries this year because of soaring global food prices, and the U.S. Agency for International Development is drafting plans to reduce the number of recipient nations,...
(By Anthony Faiola, The Washington Post)

Clinton Ad Hints Obama Is Unprepared for Crisis
(By Anne E. Kornblut and Shailagh Murray, The Washington Post)

A Brand of Politician: To a True Maverick, It's an Earned Label
(By Joe Holley, The Washington Post)

U.S.-Russia Relations Chilly Amid Transition
Stalled Nuclear Pact Is Just One Sign of Unease
(By Peter Baker, The Washington Post)

Fur Flies at Beauty Pageant (But It's Not What You Think)
In Eastern Shore's Muskrat Country, Contestants Keep Two Traditions Alive
(By David A. Fahrenthold, The Washington Post)

More Today's Highlights

POLITICS
U.S.-Russia Relations Chilly Amid Transition
Nearly two years ago, President Bush decided to open a new era of civilian nuclear cooperation with Russia. The two governments negotiated an agreement and initialed it just days before President Vladimir Putin went fishing with Bush last summer at the family compound in Kennebunkport, Maine.
(By Peter Baker, The Washington Post)

Clinton Ad Hints Obama Is Unprepared for Crisis
(By Anne E. Kornblut and Shailagh Murray, The Washington Post)

Mukasey Refuses to Prosecute Bush Aides
(By Dan Eggen, The Washington Post)

Coordinator Quits Gulf Recovery Job
Bush Appointee Says Much Remains To Be Done, But Work Is on Track
(By Spencer S. Hsu, The Washington Post)

Clinton Has Connections, While Obama Has Momentum
(By Keith B. Richburg, The Washington Post)

More Politics

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NATION
Bush Aide Resigns Over Plagiarism
WACO, Tex, Feb. 29 -- An aide to President Bush responsible for outreach to conservative and Christian groups resigned Friday after acknowledging that he had plagiarized material for a column he wrote for his hometown paper in Fort Wayne, Ind.
(By Michael Abramowitz and William Branigin, The Washington Post)

Anthrax Ruling to Be Appealed
Judge Dismisses Suit Against Pentagon's Vaccination Policy
(By Christopher Lee, The Washington Post)

U.S.-Russia Relations Chilly Amid Transition
Stalled Nuclear Pact Is Just One Sign of Unease
(By Peter Baker, The Washington Post)

U.S.-Saudi Effort Seeks to End Syrian Interference in Lebanon
(By Robin Wright, The Washington Post)

More Nation

WORLD
Turkish Troops Leaving N. Iraq
BAGHDAD, Feb. 29 -- Turkey announced Friday that it had pulled its troops out of northern Iraq, ending an eight-day invasion to pursue Kurdish guerrillas that raised tensions with the Iraqi government and fears of a regional conflict. The withdrawal came one day after both President Bush and U.S....
(By Sudarsan Raghavan and Ellen Knickmeyer, The Washington Post)

U.S.-Saudi Effort Seeks to End Syrian Interference in Lebanon
(By Robin Wright, The Washington Post)

U.S. Zeal for Iran's Non-Muslims Faulted
Minorities' Exodus Worries Leaders Of Fading Faiths
(By Thomas Erdbrink and Karin Brulliard, The Washington Post)

U.S.-Russia Relations Chilly Amid Transition
Stalled Nuclear Pact Is Just One Sign of Unease
(By Peter Baker, The Washington Post)

Bush Plans Further Reduction in Forces
Pause to Be for Review, White House Says
(By Peter Baker, The Washington Post)

More World

METRO
Va. Road Taxing Authority Rejected
The Virginia Supreme Court ruled yesterday that a regional authority created as part of a landmark transportation compromise cannot constitutionally impose taxes and fees, imperiling billions of dollars for road and transit projects and setting up a series of hard choices for legislators and...
(By Jerry Markon and Tim Craig, The Washington Post)

Fairfax County To Recalculate Disputed 2008 Assessments
(By Bill Turque, The Washington Post)

A Snack, a Slip And a Second Chance
Store Offers to Take Back Worker Fired Over a Doughnut and Milk
(By Donna St. George, The Washington Post)

Senate Panel Cuts University Funds, Putting Tuition Freeze in Jeopardy
(By Annapolis Digest, The Washington Post)

Meteorological Winter Comes to a Close After a Relatively Gentle Sojourn in Area
(By Martin Weil, The Washington Post)

More Metro

BUSINESS
Soaring Food Prices Putting U.S. Emergency Aid in Peril
The U.S. government's humanitarian relief agency will significantly scale back emergency food aid to some of the world's poorest countries this year because of soaring global food prices, and the U.S. Agency for International Development is drafting plans to reduce the number of recipient nations,...
(By Anthony Faiola, The Washington Post)

Boeing Loses Bid to Build Tankers to Its Rival
(By Dana Hedgpeth, The Washington Post)

Non-Toxic Tots
Parents Pay Dearly for Safety
(By Annys Shin, The Washington Post)

Fairfax County To Recalculate Disputed 2008 Assessments
(By Bill Turque, The Washington Post)

Stocks Endure Second-Worst Day of the Year
Insurer's Record Loss Spurs Recession Fears
(By Tomoeh Murakami Tse, The Washington Post)

More Business

TECHNOLOGY
Celera to Move Headquarters To California, May Spin Off
Celera, the Rockville biotech company that scientist J. Craig Venter founded to map the human genome, announced yesterday that it will move its headquarters to Northern California.
(By Thomas Heath, The Washington Post)

Study Finds Dogs, Robots Cheer Elderly
(By CHERYL WITTENAUER, AP)

More Technology

SPORTS
Headed for Blowout Loss, Washington Bounces Back
The struggling Wizards use a third-quarter surge to overcome an 18-point deficit and beat the Chicago Bulls, 97-91, on Friday night.
(By Ivan Carter, The Washington Post)

Hoyas Dig Down In Deep Big East
(By Camille Powell, The Washington Post)

Nats' Sunny Outlook Not Just Seasonal
(By Thomas Boswell, The Washington Post)

Huet Shuts Out the Devils In His Debut for the Caps
Capitals 4, Devils 0
(By Tarik El-Bashir, The Washington Post)

B. Boone Steps Back Up To the Plate
(By Barry Svrluga, The Washington Post)

More Sports

STYLE
Old Names With New Faces
PARIS, Feb. 29 The fashion industry here continues to deal with the problem of too many well-known brand names that are long past their expiration date. They are comfortable calling a model obsolete before she celebrates her 25th birthday, but refuse to admit that a middle-aged design house can't be...
(By Robin Givhan, The Washington Post)

NAMES & FACES
(The Washington Post)

For Expatriates, Kenya's Torment Is Their Own
Shock Waves From the Unrest Reach Those Far Away
(By DeNeen L. Brown, The Washington Post)

That 'Big Give' Feeling: Warm, Fuzzy & Familiar
(By Tom Shales, The Washington Post)

A Brand of Politician: To a True Maverick, It's an Earned Label
(By Joe Holley, The Washington Post)

More Style

Transportation, Unfixed
VIRGINIA's first transportation funding plan in a generation was gutted yesterday by the state's Supreme Court. In a stroke, the court scrapped almost half of the $1.1 billion in new annual outlays for roads, rails and buses approved last year by the General Assembly -- a spending scheme that had...
(The Washington Post)

At Best, a Pander
The Democratic candidates' intemperate promise to renegotiate NAFTA
(The Washington Post)

Piecemeal Tort Reform
A Supreme Court ruling on medical devices is cause for cheers as well as concerns.
(The Washington Post)

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