Barack Obama
Barack Obama
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 Rove is in the Air Posted Thursday, July 31, 2008, at 6:22 AM ET The Wall Street Journal's world-wide newsbox leads with word that the White House will announce "the largest overhaul of intelligence powers in a generation" today. President Bush signed an executive order updating spy powers yesterday that boosts the power of the director of national intelligence. The Los Angeles Times leads with a look at how John McCain's campaign is focusing its energies on trying to shape the public's view of Barack Obama. Funnily enough, that's exactly what Obama's campaign is trying to do as well. While McCain has turned increasingly negative--"even derisive," says the LAT--in trying to portray Obama as inexperienced and out of touch, the presumptive Democratic nominee is attempting to convince voters that he can be trusted as commander in chief. The New York Times leads with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's announcement that he would resign after his party chooses a new leader in the September elections. The Washington Post leads with a new National Defense Strategy that Secretary Robert Gates approved last month and hasn't been officially released. In the document, Gates describes the fight against extremists and terrorists as a "Long War" that will not end with the fights in Afghanistan and Iraq. As a result, the Pentagon must master "irregular" warfare and the country needs to embrace the use of "soft power" if it hopes to be successful. USA Today leads with a look at how air travelers have been experiencing lots of flight delays despite government efforts to alleviate the problem after last year's disastrous summer. The problem has improved in some airports and worsened in others. But in roughly the first half of the year, the number of on-time arrivals across the country improved less than 1 percentage point from last year. 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 News & Politics You Can Learn a Lot About Obama From the Law School Exams He Gave News & Politics Just Release the Edwards Photos Already, National Enquirer News & Politics Is Murdering Liberals a Hate Crime? | Advertisement  |
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