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 A Comeback for Saddam's Baath Party? Posted Thursday, Dec. 18, 2008, at 6:39 AM ET The New York Times leads with word that "up to 35" officials, including four generals, from Iraq's Ministry of the Interior have been arrested and some have been accused of trying to reconstitute Saddam Hussein's Baath Party. There's talk that some of them were in the early stages of planning a coup, but details are scant. The Washington Post leads with Chrysler's announcement that it will suspend production at its 30 U.S. factories for one month, beginning Friday. The automaker was already planning to stop production for two weeks, but extended it in order to save cash at a time when it's struggling to survive and Washington has yet to award the company the billions of dollars in loans it said it needed to continue operating. "If I were a Chrysler worker, I'd be worried that the plant won't reopen," an industry analyst said. USA Today leads with an analysis of the federal government's first ratings of nursing homes that found non-profit homes generally provide better care. The new ratings system assigns homes one to five stars based on a complicated formula that takes into account several factors. Overall, 27 percent of for-profit homes were given one star, while 13 percent of non-profit homes received the same rating. Also, 19 percent of non-profit homes received five stars, compared to only 9 percent of for-profit homes. The Wall Street Journal leads with President-elect Barack Obama choice of a veteran regulator to lead the Securities and Exchange Commission. Mary Schapiro, the chief executive of the National Association of Securities Dealers, will take over an agency that has been under heavy criticism lately for failing to prevent the financial crisis and not catching Bernard Madoff's alleged Ponzi scheme. In addition, Obama will nominate Rep. Ray LaHood, an Illinois Republican, to head the Department of Transportation. The Los Angeles Times leads locally and goes high with a look at Teodoro Garcia Simental, one of Mexico's most feared crime bosses. Even though he's thought to be responsible for most of the gang-related violence that has been plaguing Mexico, most people have no idea what he looks like and many police officers and prosecutors don't even dare utter his name for fear of reprisal. 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 How Long Should Bernie Madoff Go to Jail For? The 25 Best Songs of the Year Like "The Biggest Loser"? You'll Love "Too Fat To Toddle." | Advertisement  |
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