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 Making it Official By Daniel Politi Posted Thursday, Aug. 28, 2008, at 6:17 AM ET The papers all lead with Barack Obama officially becoming the first African American presidential nominee of a major party. USA Today makes the point directly in its banner headline: "A Night for History," which is a theme that is echoed in all the papers. In a carefully choreographed event that was the result of weeks of negotiations, Sen. Hillary Clinton stepped up to the microphone as her home state of New York was called upon to cast its votes. Clinton then moved to suspend the roll call and nominate Obama by acclamation "in the spirit of unity." The Washington Post points out that Clinton's "gesture of conciliation brought to a conclusion the closest and hardest-fought nomination battle Democrats have waged in the modern era of presidential politics." And the crowd went wild. "With the tension released, the scene inside the Pepsi Center was like an end-of-semester party," notes the Los Angeles Times. "Delegates whooped, embraced and danced in the aisles." Despite all the careful planning, the New York Times points out that Democrats weren't eager to draw "attention to the lingering resentments between Clinton and Obama delegates" and it was the "first time in at least 50 years that Democrats have not scheduled their roll call on prime-time television." In the end, there wasn't much reason to worry. As the Wall Street Journal highlights, "most, but not all, of Sen. Clinton's loyal supporters already were following her example" and casting their votes for Obama before the former first lady ended the roll call. Even former President Bill Clinton's home state of Arkansas cast most of its votes for Obama. 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 How Obama Can Top His 2004 Convention Speech News & Politics Imagine Spending a Whole Day With Lanny Davis Business & Tech I Saved $550 by Buying Glasses on the Internet!	Advertisement
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Finally, he spoke for national unity: The pundits like to slice-and-dice our country into Red States and Blue States; Red States for Republicans, Blue States for Democrats. He received his B.A. degree in 1983, then worked for one year at Business International Corporation. Obama has divested US$180,000 in personal holdings of Sudan-related stock, and he has urged divestment from companies doing business in Iran. " During his first two and a half years in the Senate, Obama received Honorary Doctorates of Law from Knox College, University of Massachusetts Boston, Northwestern University, Xavier University of Louisiana, and Southern New Hampshire University. Obama received over 52% of the vote in the March 2004 primary, emerging 29% ahead of his nearest Democratic rival. He served in the Illinois Senate from 1997 to 2004, launching his campaign for U.S. Senate in 2003. Asked to name a "hidden talent," Obama answered: "I'm a pretty good poker player. You want a fight, President Bush? Let's finish the fight with Bin Laden and al-Qaeda, through effective, coordinated intelligence, and a shutting down of the financial networks that support terrorism, and a homeland security program that involves more than color-coded warnings. The book's last chapters describe his first visit to Kenya, a journey to connect with his Luo family and heritage.

His first bill was the "Higher Education Opportunity through Pell Grant Expansion Act. " In an October 2006 interview on The Oprah Winfrey Show, Obama highlighted the diversity of his extended family: "Michelle will tell you that when we get together for Christmas or Thanksgiving, it's like a little mini-United Nations," he said.