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 Fight Night By Daniel Politi Posted Friday, Aug. 29, 2008, at 6:00 AM ET The papers lead with Barack Obama accepting the nomination for president last night in front of more than 84,000 people at a packed outdoor football stadium. When Obama walked on stage, the "cheering went on for several minutes; the stadium erupted with hundreds of camera flashes and shuddered from the concussion of thousands of stamping feet," notes the Wall Street Journal. USA Today says the Democratic convention ended "with a display of fireworks and pageantry worthy of an Olympic opening." Everyone makes a point of emphasizing that Obama's address was much more critical of John McCain than his usual speeches. It "was less lofty than his earlier rhetorical forays, more specific on the policies he would pursue as president and more scathing toward McCain," the Washington Post summarizes. The Los Angeles Times agrees and says it "was more sharply worded than his usual lyrical prose." The New York Times notes that Obama "went so far as to attack the presumed strength of Mr. McCain's campaign, national security." 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 Arts & Life *Slate* Poll: What Netflix Rental Have You Kept Unwatched the Longest? News & Politics Come On, Dems. Start Bashing Bush for Shredding the Constitution. News & Politics Do You Really Get Drunk Faster at High Elevations?	Advertisement
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