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 Government Could Control Automakers Posted Tuesday, Dec. 9, 2008, at 7:13 AM ET The New York Times leads, and the Washington Post off-leads, news that Congress and the White House are getting closer to agreeing on a plan to rescue the U.S. auto industry by providing $15 billion in emergency loans as long as the companies agree to grant the government broad oversight powers. Assuming a deal is reached, "the car industry would be the latest to submit to strict government scrutiny in return for a bailout," declares the Wall Street Journal, which gives top billing to the news on its front page. USA Today leads with a new report by the Pentagon's inspector general that says the military was well aware of the dangers posed by roadside bombs before the Iraq war but did little to develop vehicles that could have done a better job of protecting service members in the war zone. The Marine Corps leadership basically ignored a 2005 request for Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicles and said that outfitting more armor in existing Humvees was the "best available" option. A study earlier this year claimed hundreds of marines died unnecessarily due to the delays in getting the appropriate vehicles to the war zone. The WP leads with news that the five Guantanamo detainees accused of planning the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks said they were ready to confess and plead guilty. The offer to plead guilty was later withdrawn after the military judge raised a number of legal questions, but this latest development could complicate things for President-elect Barack Obama, who has vowed to close the detention camp. The Los Angeles Times devotes its top non-local spot to the unsealing of the Justice Department's case against five private security guards for their role in the shootings in Baghdad's Nisoor Square last year that killed 17 Iraqi civilians. A sixth Blackwater guard provided lots of information to authorities as part of an agreement to plead guilty to lesser charges. 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 Caroline Kennedy Would Make a Lousy New York Senator Russia to Historians: Stop Picking on Stalin Amazon's iPhone App Will Make You a Better Shopper | Advertisement  |
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