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 Obama: Show Me the Money Posted Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2009, at 6:27 AM ET The New York Times leads with word that President-elect Barack Obama will issue an executive order in his first full day of office that will order the closing of the U.S. military prison at Guantamo Bay, Cuba. The Wall Street Journal, which goes inside with the news, says the order will come within Obama's first week in office. The detention facility won't close right away as some estimate it could take up to a year to figure out what to do with the remaining 248 prisoners. The Washington Post and the WSJ's world-wide newsbox lead with President Bush officially requesting the second half of the $700 billion bailout package on behalf of Obama, who began an aggressive lobbying campaign yesterday to convince skeptical lawmakers to give him access to the funds. Obama is calling key members of Congress vowing there will be more oversight on how the money is spent and promising a renewed focus on helping homeowners avoid foreclosure. USA Today leads with a look at how many states continue to spend money as if the recession had all been a bad dream. As revenue continues to decrease, this unabashed spending means that many state budgets will fall deeper in the red over the coming months as most state leaders appear to be waiting to see how much they'll receive from Washington as part of the planned stimulus package. A lot of states "haven't really 'fessed up yet in terms of how bad it is," said the executive director of the National Governors Association. The Los Angeles Times leads locally with a look at how fire chiefs across Southern California are debating whether, in some situations, residents should be allowed to stay and defend their homes from a wildfire. Some fire chiefs believe it could be an efficient way to deal with a lack of resources during a time of lean budgets, but others say it could unnecessarily put lives at risk. 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 Why Are Indonesian Ferries Always Sinking? Is the New iTunes Good for Downloaders? Now Bush Gives an Interesting Press Conference? | Advertisement  |
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