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 It's Official: Recession is Here Posted Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2008, at 6:23 AM ET After five trading days when investors seemed optimistic about the incoming Obama administration, reality came crashing down yesterday as the private group of economists charged with defining the nation's business cycles declared that the economy has been in a recession for a year. Coupled with fresh grim economic data, the news sent investors into a panic. The Dow Jones industrial average plunged 7.7 percent and the Standard & Poor's 500 index dropped 8.9 percent. In declaring that the nation has been in a recession since December 2007, "the National Bureau of Economic Research confirmed what many Americans had already been feeling in their bones," notes the New York Times. The Washington Post points out that the announcement came at a time when the recession appears to be getting worse and the Los Angeles Times highlights that many think the downturn could continue until well into 2010, if not longer. The Wall Street Journal points out that if it lasts past April, it would be the longest recession since the Great Depression. USA Today leads with President-elect Barack Obama officially unveiling his national security team that he said would deliver "a new dawn of American leadership." Obama recognized that some who were on the stage with him, including Sen. Hillary Clinton and Defense Secretary Robert Gates, had disagreed with him in the past but made it clear that was part of the reason they were chosen. "I'm a strong believer in strong personalities and strong opinions," Obama said. "I'm going to be welcoming a vigorous debate inside the White House." Many foreign policy experts believe Obama's team "will differ more in style than substance," as USAT puts it, from the more moderate team that served in President Bush's second term. 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 Which Civilization Is Better, Ant or Human? What's Creepy About DNA-Testing Kids for Athletic Prowess Shafer: How Rupert Murdoch Is Like Satan in "Paradise Lost" | Advertisement  |
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