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.

Tuesday, April 01, 2008

TODAY'S HIGHLIGHTS
GAO Blasts Weapons Budget
Government auditors issued a scathing review yesterday of dozens of the Pentagon's biggest weapons systems, saying ships, aircraft and satellites are billions of dollars over budget and years behind schedule.
(By Dana Hedgpeth, The Washington Post)

Under the Treasury's Plan, Fed Would Lose a Key Power
(By Neil Irwin, The Washington Post)

A Block in Baghdad Mourns Its Own
Sudden U.S. Gunfire Claims Child, Her Grandfather and a Neighbor, Residents Say
(By Sudarsan Raghavan, The Washington Post)

As Rivals Battle, McCain Builds November Machine
(By Michael D. Shear and Dan Balz, The Washington Post)

More Today's Highlights

POLITICS
As Rivals Battle, McCain Builds November Machine
As his Democratic presidential rivals squabble, Sen. John McCain has moved to transform his ragtag primary campaign into a general-election operation by boosting fundraising, establishing control over the Republican National Committee, and beginning a conversation with voters who live in states...
(By Michael D. Shear and Dan Balz, The Washington Post)

Jackson Resigns as HUD Secretary
Longtime Bush Friend Is Facing Cronyism Investigations
(By Dan Eggen and Carol D. Leonnig, The Washington Post)

Opposition To Treasury's Blueprint Gains Steam
(By David Cho and Jeffrey H. Birnbaum, The Washington Post)

Tricky Votes Loom For 3 Candidates
Lawmakers From Opposing Parties Aim to Make Campaign Trail Slippery
(By Jonathan Weisman and Paul Kane, The Washington Post)

As Jefferson Ruling Stands, Prosecutors Feel Stymied
Justices Decline to Review Decision Against FBI Raid on Congressman's Office, Raising Fears Over Other Inquiries
(By Robert Barnes and Susan Schmidt, The Washington Post)

More Politics

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NATION
Jackson Resigns as HUD Secretary
Embattled Housing and Urban Development Secretary Alphonso Jackson announced his resignation yesterday, leaving the Bush administration without a top housing official in the midst of a vast mortgage crisis that has shaken the global economy.
(By Dan Eggen and Carol D. Leonnig, The Washington Post)

As Jefferson Ruling Stands, Prosecutors Feel Stymied
Justices Decline to Review Decision Against FBI Raid on Congressman's Office, Raising Fears Over Other Inquiries
(By Robert Barnes and Susan Schmidt, The Washington Post)

Opposition To Treasury's Blueprint Gains Steam
(By David Cho and Jeffrey H. Birnbaum, The Washington Post)

SEAL Killed in Iraq To Get Medal of Honor
(By Ann Scott Tyson, The Washington Post)

Detainee Is Charged With Capital Murder in Embassy Bombing
(By Josh White and Joby Warrick, The Washington Post)

More Nation

WORLD
A Block in Baghdad Mourns Its Own
BAGHDAD, March 31 -- Abdul Qader, his chest and leg wrapped in white bandages, began to cry -- not out of pain, but loss. He remembered seeing the American Humvees, then a hail of bullets. He remembered seeing his close friend and neighbor, Abbas Ramadan, shot as he clutched his 2-year-old...
(By Sudarsan Raghavan, The Washington Post)

Bush Visits a Ukraine Deeply Split Over Bid to Join Western Alliance
(By Peter Baker, The Washington Post)

In Sri Lanka, Fear of Being 'Disappeared'
Government Offensive Against Tamil Rebels Also Claims Civilian Victims
(By Emily Wax, The Washington Post)

Mugabe Is Trailing, Observer Team Says
With No Official Results Yet, Group Predicts Runoff
(By Craig Timberg and Darlington Majonga, The Washington Post)

Bin Laden Took Part in 1986 Arms Deal, Book Says
(By Karen DeYoung, The Washington Post)

More World

METRO
Slaying Suspect's Wife Warned of Risk to Children
Mark Castillo drowned his three children, one by one, in the bathtub of a Baltimore hotel room and placed their naked bodies in a bed, he later told police. He swallowed 100 Motrin pills and stabbed himself in the neck repeatedly with a steak knife. Then, police said, he drifted into...
(By Raymond McCaffrey, Dan Morse and Daniel de Vise, The Washington Post)

Dominion Gets Initial Approval For Coal Plant
(By Tim Craig and Sandhya Somashekhar, The Washington Post)

Rail to Reel
Metro Opens Its Doors To Hollywood, as Long as It's Not During Rush Hour
(By Lena H. Sun, The Washington Post)

'Tech Tax' Repeal Likely to Clear Md. Senate Panel
(By John Wagner, The Washington Post)

Tourism Hopes Riding On Alexandria Trolley
(By Kirstin Downey, The Washington Post)

More Metro

BUSINESS
What's It Worth? Housing Outlook 2008
The Washington Post's Allan Lengel and real estate associate Nancy Wilson will be online to answer your questions about the real estate industry.
(Allan Lengel and Nancy Wilson, washingtonpost.com)

Va. Employment Commission Cuts Back
Fairfax Office Closing as Jobless Claims Rise; Work Goes to Alexandria, Woodbridge
(By Alejandro Lazo, The Washington Post)

Opposition To Treasury's Blueprint Gains Steam
(By David Cho and Jeffrey H. Birnbaum, The Washington Post)

Three Firms Combine on Cellphone Remittances
(By Cecilia Kang, The Washington Post)

GAO Blasts Weapons Budget
Cost Overruns Hit $295 Billion
(By Dana Hedgpeth, The Washington Post)

More Business

TECHNOLOGY
Skilled-Worker Visa Demand Expected To Far Exceed Supply
The nation's giant technology firms are competing this week in the annual government lottery for visas allowing them to hire highly skilled foreign workers, and few are expecting to get what they want.
(By Peter Whoriskey, The Washington Post)

Three Firms Combine on Cellphone Remittances
(By Cecilia Kang, The Washington Post)

GAO Blasts Weapons Budget
Cost Overruns Hit $295 Billion
(By Dana Hedgpeth, The Washington Post)

Campaign.USA
With the Internet Comes a New Political 'Clickocracy'
(By Jose Antonio Vargas, The Washington Post)

Veterans Return To Bleak Job Market
(By Stephen Barr, The Washington Post)

More Technology

SPORTS
Wizards' Road Trip Ends With A Thud
Playing without injured starters Antonio Daniels and Caron Butler, the Wizards close out a season-long five-game road trip by getting smoked in Utah, 129-87.
(By Ivan Carter, The Washington Post)

O's Making a Constructive Effort
(By Thomas Boswell, The Washington Post)

Taking Their Show on the Road
In Philadelphia, More Ninth-Inning Heroics Lead Nationals to Another Win : Nationals 11, Phillies 6
(By Barry Svrluga, The Washington Post)

Terrapins Stopped Short
Toliver Scores 35 Points, but Wiggins's 41 Lead Cardinal to Final Four: Stanford 98, Maryland 87
(By Kathy Orton, The Washington Post)

Daniels, Butler Sit; Could Return Against Bucks
(By Ivan Carter, The Washington Post)

More Sports

STYLE
Campaign.USA
We saw it coming. Just as MySpace and Facebook change the way we communicate, just as YouTube alters the way we entertain ourselves, just as eBay and iTunes modify the way we shop, the Internet is transforming the way we engage with this never-ending presidential campaign.
(By Jose Antonio Vargas, The Washington Post)

The Reliable Source
(By Amy Argetsinger and Roxanne Roberts, The Washington Post)

A Swing and Another Hit
At Nationals Park, Pop Music Pumps Up the Baseball Crowd
(By J. Freedom du Lac, The Washington Post)

Making the Grade: Studio Repeats 'History Boys'
(By Peter Marks, The Washington Post)

The Interpreter of Memories From The Killing Fields
(By Elizabeth Becker, The Washington Post)

More Style

LIVE DISCUSSIONS
Talking Fashion
Deputy Editor of the Sunday Source Suzanne D'Amato and washingtonpost.com Fashion and Beauty Editor Janet Bennett Kelly help answer your fashion and style questions.
(Suzanne D'Amato and Janet Bennett Kelly, washingtonpost.com)

What's Cooking With Kim O'Donnel
(Kim O'Donnel, washingtonpost.com)

Book World: 'The Bin Ladens'
'An Arabian Family in the American Century'
(Steve Coll, washingtonpost.com)

Opinion Focus
(Eugene Robinson, washingtonpost.com)

Lean Plate Club
Talk About Nutrition and Health
(Sally Squires, washingtonpost.com)

More Live Discussions

Zimbabwe Teeters
ZIMBABWE IS at a familiar tipping point. There is growing evidence that a presidential and parliamentary election held Saturday was won by the opposition -- mandating, at long last, the retirement of 84-year-old President Robert Mugabe. But there's been a suspicious and prolonged delay in the ann...
(The Washington Post)

Tots, Teens and Safety
Maryland lawmakers have a chance to save some young lives.
(The Washington Post)

Holding Pattern
The demise of New York's passenger bill of rights puts the spotlight on Congress.
(The Washington Post)

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