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 Knocked Up By Daniel Politi Posted Wednesday, Oct. 29, 2008, at 6:23 AM ET USA Today and the Washington Post lead with, while the Wall Street Journal banners, the latest wild ride in Wall Street as investors ignored a flurry of bad economic news and sent the Dow Jones industrial average up almost 900 points, or 10.9 percent. It marked the second-largest point increase and the sixth-biggest percentage gain in history. The New York Times leads with a look at what it calls the upcoming "credit card crisis." Lenders are cutting back on credit card offers and reducing credit lines at a time when the declining economy is making it more difficult for consumers to make ends meet. Even those with good credit are being affected as lenders try to prevent more losses, which could amount to $55 billion over the next year and a half on top of the approximately $21 billion in bad credit card loans that they wrote off in the first six months of 2008. The Los Angeles Times leads with a new poll that shows Barack Obama with a significant lead in two crucial battleground states. In Ohio, Obama leads 49 percent to 40 percent among likely voters, while in Florida his lead is 50 percent to 43 percent. Voters still see John McCain as more qualified to deal with terrorism and Iraq but that's hardly the top issue at a time when about 90 percent of registered voters in Ohio say the economy is doing badly. The poll also includes an interesting nugget that shows how it has been difficult for Obama to shake a persistent rumor that he's Muslim. Around 7 percent of voters think Obama is Muslim, while more than 40 percent say they're not sure what his religion is. 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 What Lawyers Like Obama Mean When They Say "Redistribution" Visiting With Obama's Grandmother in Kenya If You Visit a State, Will You Get More Votes There?	Advertisement
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