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.

If you have any difficulty viewing this newsletter click here

Print This E-Mail

Feedback

Opinions Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2008

David S. Broder
A Force for Good -- but Not at State
Making Hillary Rodham Clinton the secretary of state in Barack Obama's administration would be a mistake.

Ruth Marcus
Keep the BlackBerry
Obama should cling to e-mail as a way to pierce the White House bubble.

Kathleen Parker
Giving Up on God
Armband religion is killing the Republican Party, and it's time to let go.

Harold Meyerson
A Job for Henry Waxman
Capitol Hill's top cop can help Obama deliver the change he's promised.

Jim Hoagland
Overtures Best Left To Obama
Better never than late seems to be Bush's motto in diplomacy. This time he is right.

Michael Gerson
Should GM Be Allowed to Fail?
The coming bailout will be a major challenge for Obama.

Dan Froomkin's White House Watch
The Burrowing of the Bushies
It happens every time a president leaves office: Some of his political appointees don't want to go, so they "burrow in" to the civil service.

Tom TOLES & Ann TELNAES