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.



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today's papers The Pink State By Daniel Politi Posted Wednesday, June 18, 2008, at 6:25 AM ET The New York Times leads with rare good news out of Burma, where relief workers are coming back from some of the areas devastated by Cyclone Nargis with reports that survivors aren't doing as badly as initially feared. Of course, this doesn't mean survivors aren't struggling to stay alive, but there's little evidence that the delay in reaching the Irrawaddy Delta led to large numbers of deaths or disease outbreaks. The Wall Street Journal leads its world-wide newsbox with the car bomb that exploded in a predominantly Shiite area of Baghdad and killed at least 51 people. It was the deadliest bombing in Iraq's capital in three months. USA Today leads with a look at how the rising Mississippi River threatens to break through levees in several towns that continue to rely on outdated flood protection. A review done by the paper found that at least 17 levees in the affected region "are too low to hold off a 100-year flood." The Washington Post leads with the latest back-and-forth between Sens. Barack Obama and John McCain, which yesterday focused on terrorism and who would do a better job at keeping Americans safe. It all began when McCain's camp said Obama has an "extremely naive approach to terrorism" and accused the presumptive Democratic nominee of wanting to treat terrorists like ordinary criminals. Obama fought back and said those that are criticizing him are the same people who let Osama bin Laden get away and "helped to engineer the distraction of the war in Iraq." The Los Angeles Times leads with the first full day of legalized same-sex marriages in California. Hundreds of couples, including Star Trek actor George Takei and his partner Brad Altman, descended on courthouses and city halls across the state to get married. By the end of the day, more than 2,300 marriage licenses had been issued and the ceremonies largely went off without a hitch as opponents of same-sex marriage remained mostly silent as they continued planning their campaign to overturn last month's state Supreme Court decision that allowed the unions. "We are silent today, but we're just biding our time," one activist said. To continue reading, click here. Daniel Politi writes "Today's Papers" for Slate. He can be reached at todayspapers@slate.com. Join the Fray: our reader discussion forum What did you think of this article? POST A MESSAGE \| READ MESSAGES Also In Slate Business & Tech Beer Ads Just Aren't Doing It for Me Anymore Health & Science Alas, Bathroom Hand Dryers Really Are Better for the Planet Arts & Life The Secret Plot To Make Tom Cruise Look More Like a Nazi	Advertisement
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