Saturday, February 28, 2009

He was overwhelmingly reelected to the Illinois Senate in 1998 and 2002, officially resigning in November 2004, following his election to the U.S. Senate.

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 a Numbers Game, and Nobody's Winning By Lydia DePillis Posted Saturday, Feb. 28, 2009, at 5:12 AM ET The New York Times and Wall Street Journal lead with the latest numbers out from the Commerce Department--which douse any hopes one might have harbored for a near-term recovery--and their implications for a stimulus plan that relies on much rosier projections. The Los Angeles Times leads with the local angle on the fiasco; California's unemployment rate topped 10 percent in January, well over the national average of 7.6 percent. The Washington Post leads (and ends) with President Barack Obama's announcement that the U.S. withdrawal from Iraq has a date: August 2010, with a third of current troop levels to remain in place through 2011. Although faster than what the generals had planned pre-election, it's a more cautious timeline than Obama had laid out on the campaign trail; the paper contrasts his strategy of "risk management" and "mitigation" with what it called "breathtakingly bold" action on the economic stimulus. Still, aside from some disappointment on the left, the plan--which got no cover treatment from the NYT--drew broad acceptance, with Republicans pointing towards the surge as what may allow for a successful withdrawal of troops. According to the Post, they will be missed. To continue reading, click here. Lydia DePillis is a writer living in New York. Join the Fray: our reader discussion forum What did you think of this article? POST A MESSAGE \| READ MESSAGES Also In Slate The Obamas and the Great American Tradition of Church Shopping Is It Legal To Send Blood Through the Mail? The Obamas Should Name Their Dog "Government"	Advertisement
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presidential candidate has attracted conflicting analyses among commentators challenged to align him with traditional social categories. Obama plays basketball, a sport he participated in as a member of his high school's varsity team. US$24.8 million of Obama's first quarter funds can be used in the primaries, the highest of any 2008 presidential candidate. In January 2006, Obama joined a Congressional delegation for meetings with U.S. military in Kuwait and Iraq. Senator Paul Simon; the support of Simon's daughter; and political endorsements by the Chicago Tribune and Chicago Sun-Times. In August 2004, with less than three months to go before election day, Alan Keyes accepted the Illinois Republican Party's nomination to replace Ryan. He was also criticized by a rival pro-choice candidate in the Democratic primary and by his Republican pro-life opponent in the general election for having voted either "present" or "no" on anti-abortion legislation. I'm opposed to dumb wars. In his preface to the 2004 revised edition, Obama explains that he had hoped the story of his family "might speak in some way to the fissures of race that have characterized the American experience, as well as the fluid state of identity—the leaps through time, the collision of cultures—that mark our modern life. " Obama writes: "It was because of these newfound understandings—that religious commitment did not require me to suspend critical thinking, disengage from the battle for economic and social justice, or otherwise retreat from the world that I knew and loved—that I was finally able to walk down the aisle of Trinity United Church of Christ one day and be baptized. I can say what I want without censorship or without having to pay a special charge.

During his 2004 U.S. Senate campaign, Obama won the endorsement of the Illinois Fraternal Order of Police, whose officials cited his "longtime support of gun control measures and his willingness to negotiate compromises," despite his support for some bills the police union had opposed. He has authored two bestselling books: a memoir of his youth entitled Dreams from My Father, and The Audacity of Hope, a personal commentary on U.S. politics. 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. In March 2007, speaking before AIPAC, a pro-Israel lobby, he said that while the U.S. "should take no option, including military action, off the table, sustained and aggressive diplomacy combined with tough sanctions should be our primary means to prevent Iran from building nuclear weapons. Obama wrote and delivered the keynote address at the 2004 Democratic National Convention in Boston, Massachusetts, while still serving as a state legislator. But they sense, deep in their bones, that with just a slight change in priorities, we can make sure that every child in America has a decent shot at life, and that the doors of opportunity remain open to all.

Barack Obama

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today's papers It's a Numbers Game, and Nobody's Winning By Lydia DePillis Posted Saturday, Feb. 28, 2009, at 5:12 AM ET The New York Times and Wall Street Journal lead with the latest numbers out from the Commerce Department--which douse any hopes one might have harbored for a near-term recovery--and their implications for a stimulus plan that relies on much rosier projections. The Los Angeles Times leads with the local angle on the fiasco; California's unemployment rate topped 10 percent in January, well over the national average of 7.6 percent. The Washington Post leads (and ends) with President Barack Obama's announcement that the U.S. withdrawal from Iraq has a date: August 2010, with a third of current troop levels to remain in place through 2011. Although faster than what the generals had planned pre-election, it's a more cautious timeline than Obama had laid out on the campaign trail; the paper contrasts his strategy of "risk management" and "mitigation" with what it called "breathtakingly bold" action on the economic stimulus. Still, aside from some disappointment on the left, the plan--which got no cover treatment from the NYT--drew broad acceptance, with Republicans pointing towards the surge as what may allow for a successful withdrawal of troops. According to the Post, they will be missed. To continue reading, click here. Lydia DePillis is a writer living in New York. Join the Fray: our reader discussion forum What did you think of this article? POST A MESSAGE \| READ MESSAGES Also In Slate The Obamas and the Great American Tradition of Church Shopping Is It Legal To Send Blood Through the Mail? The Obamas Should Name Their Dog "Government"	Advertisement
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" Reviewer Michael Tomasky writes that it does not contain "boldly innovative policy prescriptions that will lead the Democrats out of their wilderness," but does show Obama's potential to "construct a new politics that is progressive but grounded in civic traditions that speak to a wider range of Americans.

After the visits, Obama traveled to Jordan, Israel, and the Palestinian territories. In 1985, Obama moved to Chicago to direct a non-profit project assisting local churches to organize job training programs. But in a December 2006 Wall Street Journal editorial headlined "The Man from Nowhere," former Ronald Reagan speech writer Peggy Noonan advised Will and other "establishment" commentators to get "down from your tippy toes" and avoid becoming too quickly excited about Obama's still early political career. In early May 2007, the U.S. Secret Service announced that Obama had been placed under their protection. Obama left for his third official trip in August 2006, traveling to South Africa and Kenya, and making stops in Djibouti, Ethiopia and Chad. Lugar and Obama inspected a Nunn-Lugar program-supported nuclear warhead destruction facility at Saratov, in southern European Russia. "I've quit periodically over the last several years. " But in an October 2006 article titled "Obama: Black Like Me," British columnist Gary Younge describes Obama as "a black man who does not scare white people.

Before announcing his presidential candidacy, he began a well-publicized effort to quit smoking. " Obama writes: "It was because of these newfound understandings—that religious commitment did not require me to suspend critical thinking, disengage from the battle for economic and social justice, or otherwise retreat from the world that I knew and loved—that I was finally able to walk down the aisle of Trinity United Church of Christ one day and be baptized.

Also during the first month of the 110th Congress, Obama introduced the "Iraq War De-Escalation Act," a bill that caps troop levels in Iraq at January 10, 2007 levels, begins phased redeployment on May 1, 2007, and removes all combat brigades from Iraq by March 31, 2008.

Sunday, February 22, 2009

The speech was Obama's introduction to most of America.

Barack Obama

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today's papers Barack The Knife By Roger McShane Posted Sunday, Feb. 22, 2009, at 6:03 AM ET The New York Times and Los Angeles Times lead with Barack Obama's first budget and his plan to cut the deficit in half by the end of his term. All of the papers note that the reduction will come primarily from higher taxes on the wealthy and lower spending in Iraq. While the Washington Post fronts the Obama plan, it chooses to lead with the more sensational news of a possible arrest in the eight-year-old murder case of Chandra Levy. The Post has long been infatuated with the Levy case, describing it as "one of the most famous unsolved homicide cases in Washington history." The WP and LAT call the president's first budget "ambitious." Obama hopes to use the plan to make progress on health-care reform and move toward a cap-and-trade system for energy use. But the effort to "cut" (LAT), "slash" (NYT) or merely "trim" (WP) the deficit grabs the headlines. To do this, Obama will let most of George Bush's tax cuts expire in 2011 for those making over $250,000. The Post alone adds a touch of skepticism, noting that some "question the wisdom of announcing a plan to raise taxes in the midst of a recession." On Iraq, Obama had previously expected to save $90 billion a year by withdrawing combat troops. But the NYT says "it is not clear how much any savings would be offset by increased spending in Afghanistan." The full details of the budget won't be released until April. To continue reading, click here. Roger McShane writes for the Economist online. Join the Fray: our reader discussion forum What did you think of this article? POST A MESSAGE \| READ MESSAGES Also In Slate How the Recession Is Crushing American Marriages Is It Obama's Fault the Dow Is Tanking? Fashion Designers Battle Recession With Shoulder Pads	Advertisement
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" In December 2006, Obama joined Sen. Sam Brownback (R-KS) at the "Global Summit on AIDS and the Church" organized by church leaders Kay and Rick Warren. He flew his wife and two daughters from Chicago to join him in a visit to his father's birthplace, a village near Kisumu in rural western Kenya. Obama's fundraising prowess was affirmed again in the second quarter of 2007, when his campaign raised an additional $32.5 million, the most ever raised by a Democratic Presidential candidate in a single quarter. After the visits, Obama traveled to Jordan, Israel, and the Palestinian territories. " The chapter details how Obama, in his twenties, while working with local churches as a community organizer, came to understand "the power of the African American religious tradition to spur social change. Obama took an active role in the Senate's drive for improved border security and immigration reform. If elected, Obama would become the first non-white U.S. president. " During his first two and a half years in the Senate, Obama received Honorary Doctorates of Law from Knox College, University of Massachusetts Boston, Northwestern University, Xavier University of Louisiana, and Southern New Hampshire University. Obama later added three amendments to S. 2611, the "Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act," sponsored by Sen. Arlen Specter (R-PA). Obama's own self-narrative reinforces what a May 2004 New Yorker magazine article described as his "everyman" image. " Reviewing Obama's career in the Illinois Senate, a February 2007 article in the Washington Post noted his work with both Democrats and Republicans in drafting bipartisan legislation on ethics and health care reform. Obama has encouraged Democrats to reach out to evangelicals and other religious people, saying, "if we truly hope to speak to people where they’re at—to communicate our hopes and values in a way that’s relevant to their own—we cannot abandon the field of religious discourse. Obama's candidacy was boosted by an advertising campaign featuring images of the late Chicago Mayor Harold Washington and the late U.S.

Sunday, February 8, 2009

Lugar and Obama inspected a Nunn-Lugar program-supported nuclear warhead destruction facility at Saratov, in southern European Russia.

Barack Obama

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today's papers "Put This Plan In Motion" By Lydia DePillis Posted Sunday, Feb. 8, 2009, at 6:04 AM ET The New York Times leads with continuing stimulus deb ate in Congress, where the Senate proposal is set to collide with a House bill that currently does more to help states avoid catastrophic cuts in services. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is "very much opposed" to the cuts being made to the Senate version, which was trimmed down from a high of $900 billion to about $827 billion through slashing aid to states, funding for priorities like school construction and broadband wireless in rural areas, as well as President Barack Obama's promised middle-class tax cut. The Los Angeles Times leads with the impact of those cuts in aid to states, which are facing a collective $47.4 billion shortfall this year and $84.3 billion in 2010. On a state-by-state basis, the gaps are often breathtaking in size: Nevada's amounts to 38 percent of its general fund, while Washington's governor made a no-new-taxes pledge in her tough reelection campaign, leaving few options to fill that state's hole besides closing state parks, releasing low-risk prisoners, and "shredding" the state's generous social service programs. To continue reading, click here. Lydia DePillis is a writer living in New York. Join the Fray: our reader discussion forum What did you think of this article? POST A MESSAGE \| READ MESSAGES Also In Slate Did Obama Get Rolled by Senate Republicans? I Think I Have the Worst Boyfriend in the Universe Is the "David After the Dentist" Video Appalling or Hilarious?	Advertisement
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I'm opposed to dumb wars. On the role of government in economic affairs, Obama has written: "we should be asking ourselves what mix of policies will lead to a dynamic free market and widespread economic security, entrepreneurial innovation and upward mobility Z...Z we should be guided by what works. Barack Hussein Obama (born August 4, 1961) is the junior United States Senator from Illinois and a member of the Democratic Party. Hopefund gave US$374,000 to federal candidates in the 2006 election cycle, making it one of the top donors to federal candidates for the year. But I've got news for them too. Obama's own self-narrative reinforces what a May 2004 New Yorker magazine article described as his "everyman" image.

" The book describes his struggles as a young adult to reconcile social perceptions of his multiracial heritage. But the big telephone and cable companies want to change the Internet as we know it.

" Expressing a similar view, New York Daily News columnist Stanley Crouch wrote: "When black Americans refer to Obama as 'one of us,' I do not know what they are talking about. Hopefund gave US$374,000 to federal candidates in the 2006 election cycle, making it one of the top donors to federal candidates for the year. presidential candidate has attracted conflicting analyses among commentators challenged to align him with traditional social categories.

Thursday, February 5, 2009

Of his early childhood, Obama writes: "That my father looked nothing like the people around me—that he was black as pitch, my mother white as milk—barely registered in my mind.

Barack Obama

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Personal Finance Thursday, Feb. 5, 2009

A Taxing Time

It's been a taxing time for President Barack Obama as several of his nominees had to bail because of tax issues, including Tom Daschle who withdrew his nomination as secretary of health and human services. (Read more in Obama Says He Erred in Nominations.)

In a television interview Obama said "that average taxpayers deserve to have public officials who pay their taxes on time."

Media Critic Howard Kurtz complimented Obama for doing what his predecessor failed to do when he messed up.

Kurtz wrote: "He took his lumps. He didn't duck or evade. He used three words we never heard from George W. Bush: "I screwed up." He also said, "I think today was an embarrassment for us." And he talked about "self-inflicted wounds."

Admitting he was wrong was bold, Kurtz further writes. "Usually when a politician makes a mistake and sits down for interviews, he tries to deflect and minimize . . . Obama didn't do that. He took responsibility and didn't put himself in the position of denying the obvious."

Emily Yoffe, however, wasn't as forgiving in her oped: Taxes? Too Busy, Busy, Busy! (Feb. 3).

Yoffe points that Daschle made millions in various jobs since leaving the Senate.

"When someone earns more per week than the U.S. median yearly household income, we naively assume that person has more sophistication about money than the rest of us," Yoffe writes. "But maybe the IRS, in an effort to find scofflaws, should have every American nominated to a Cabinet post, given the salutary effect it seems to have on one's memory of taxes unpaid."

In my column today I offhandedly said I was willing to give Daschle and others the benefit of the doubt that they weren't willfully tryng to be tax cheats. Some readers thought I should have been harsher and that I should have called them liars.

"I couldn't agree more that the tax code is too complicated," wrote Bob Doggett of Hampton, Va. "However, I don't think Dashcle and [Treasury Secretary Timothy] Geithner's tax problems are examples of that. I am sure they knew exactly what they were doing."

Another reader thought that as a small business owner and former corporate executive he would have been prosecuted and subject to tax penalties if he had done the same.

It's true. If he did what Daschle and others did, he would have had to pay penalties. But it's not true that the IRS will throw you in jail for such offenses. Unless you intentionally go out of your way to cheat or hide your income, the IRS isn't likely to press criminal charges. People are audited all the time and the IRS finds that they didn't report income or made a "mistake" in claiming a deduction they shouldn't have.

Let's not get overwrought by this and frankly we may suspect some purposeful under-reporting went on, but we don't know for sure. The IRS is pretty good at going after both little and high-profile people it has evidence of who purposely cheated on their taxes.

Nonetheless Tom Toles sums up where this all should lead in another one of his brilliant political cartoons. Check it out.

Where's the Integrity?

Let's see: The American people are bailing out one major corporation after another and what are the executives doing as they receive this welfare? They are handing out year-end bonuses: a reported $18.4 billion worth!

"The offending bonus payments suggest that Wall Street utterly fails to comprehend how its standing in the nation and the world has changed," wrote Post Columnist Eugene Robinson in See Idiots of the Universe (Feb. 3).

Robinson writes that Wall Street would "be wise to pay attention to those citizens outside, the ones with the pitchforks and the torches."

It's those people with pitchforks who are struggling to hold on to their homes.

A recent study by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency found that "more than 50 percent of troubled homeowners had missed at least one payment six months after a lender modified their loan," reports Real Estate reporter Renae Merle.

And that percentage is rising. Read Just a Band-Aid on the Foreclosure Problem? (Feb. 3).

Saving Again

You know things are bad when we are thrilled to see people saving even just 3 percent of their income. But hey, we need the good news.

For the sixth consecutive month, Americans have reduced their spending and the savings rate rose by 0.8 percent to 3.6 percent.

The bad news is people are still heavily in debt. In a special report to The Post, Mark Henricks offers tips on how to maintain your cool and negotiate a debt repayment plan. For advice on what to say to get your creditor to agree to a plan read When Debt Collectors Disrupt Dinner (Feb. 1).

Henricks also identifies what debt collectors can't do. Read Borrower's Rights, Collectors' Wrongs (Feb. 1) for more.

Color of Money Challenge

I'm still looking for local couples or individuals who have lost a job or home to foreclosure and want help.

If you're having trouble with your finances, email me at colorofmoney@washpost.com and tell me your story. In the subject line, please put "2009 Color of Money Challenge" and include your full name, address, daytime and evening telephone numbers.

It's a challenge for you to dust yourself off and start over!

No Job, No Insurance

Speaking of job loss, corporate layoffs continue and as a result people are losing their health insurance.

Many are like Jean Perry, a 57-year-old Arlington resident, who lost her job as a coffee shop manager last summer. She earned $40,000 a year. Now, she's trying to get health care at a reasonable price. She could have kept her employer-provided policy, if she paid $400 a month.

"Neither rich nor poor, this group doesn't readily qualify for public programs such as Medicaid but often can't afford to buy insurance or pay hospital, doctor and drug bills" writes John Fairhall and Kate Steadman of Kaiser Health News.

I don't want to depress you but most of us are a job away from health coverage. Read The New Uninsured (Feb. 3).

You are welcome to e-mail comments and questions to singletarym@washpost.com. Please include your name and hometown; your comments may be used in a future column or newsletter unless otherwise requested.

Charity Brown contributed to this e-letter.

-Michelle Singletary

Today's Color of Money
The Confusion Over Required Withdrawals
What lessons can we learn from the high-profile tax cases of newly installed Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner and Thomas A. Daschle, President Barack Obama's failed pick for secretary of health and human services?

Jane Bryant Quinn
Obama's Recession Fix Fits Economists' Models
In the fight over the stimulus plan, Republicans are demanding more tax cuts as the best way of lifting the economy fast. "We can't borrow and spend our way to prosperity," said House Minority Leader John A. Boehner (R-Ohio).

Your Money Help Dsk
Now's the Time to Reassess Your Finances
Jill Foster and Sean Stickle are in better financial shape than last year. Both recently started new jobs, more than doubling their combined income. But with all the news of companies slashing jobs and salaries, neither Foster nor Stickle is resting easy.

From Sunday Business
When Debt Collectors Disrupt Dinner
If the phone rings at dinnertime, the odds are greater now that a credit card debt collector will be on the other end.

From Sunday Business
The Risks of Life Insurance
It was a head-spinning week for anyone with a life insurance policy.

Economy Watch
Washington Post coverage of the global financial crisis.
» Follow The Ticker, our breaking news blog.

From the Archive

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In September 2006, he was the featured speaker at Iowa Senator Tom Harkin's annual steak fry, an event traditionally attended by presidential hopefuls in the lead-up to the Iowa caucus. Obama's parents separated when he was two years old and later divorced. He flew his wife and two daughters from Chicago to join him in a visit to his father's birthplace, a village near Kisumu in rural western Kenya.

The Chicago Tribune credits the large crowds that gathered at book signings with influencing Obama's decision to run for president. The trip focused on strategies to control the world's supply of conventional weapons, biological weapons, and weapons of mass destruction, as a strategic first defense against the threat of future terrorist attacks. " He completed his J.D. degree magna cum laude in 1991. We are one people, all of us pledging allegiance to the stars and stripes, all of us defending the United States of America. Obama encouraged "others in public life to do the same" to show "there is no shame in going for an HIV test. " Speaking in November 2006 to members of Wake Up Wal-Mart, a union-backed campaign group, Obama said: "You gotta pay your workers enough that they can actually not only shop at Wal-Mart, but ultimately send their kids to college and save for retirement. "I've got relatives who look like Bernie Mac, and I've got relatives who look like Margaret Thatcher. The book's last chapters describe his first visit to Kenya, a journey to connect with his Luo family and heritage. In August 2004, with less than three months to go before election day, Alan Keyes accepted the Illinois Republican Party's nomination to replace Ryan. After the visits, Obama traveled to Jordan, Israel, and the Palestinian territories. After describing his maternal grandfather's experiences as a World War II veteran and a beneficiary of the New Deal's FHA and G.I. Bill programs, Obama said: No, people don't expect government to solve all their problems. Speaking to an elderly Jewish audience during his 2004 campaign for U.S. Senate, Obama linked the linguistic roots of his East African first name Barack to the Hebrew word baruch, meaning "blessed. " The book describes his struggles as a young adult to reconcile social perceptions of his multiracial heritage. In her January 2007 Salon article asserting that Obama "isn't black," columnist Debra Dickerson writes: "lumping us all together Zwith ObamaZ erases the significance of slavery and continuing racism while giving the appearance of progress. Its enthusiastic reception at the convention and widespread coverage by national media gave him instant celebrity status. In the November 2004 general election, Obama received 70% of the vote to Keyes's 27%. Obama said, "The time has come for universal health care in America Z...Z I am absolutely determined that by the end of the first term of the next president, we should have universal health care in this country.

Sunday, February 1, 2009

His first bill was the "Higher Education Opportunity through Pell Grant Expansion Act.

Barack Obama

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today's papers A New Era In Iraq? By Roger McShane Posted Sunday, Feb. 1, 2009, at 6:03 AM ET The New York Times leads with an upbeat report on Saturday's provincial elections in Iraq, where the U.S. is "already drifting offstage." Despite a decreased American presence on the ground, there were no confirmed deaths as Iraqis voted in 14 of the country's 18 provinces. The Los Angeles Times leads with Barack Obama preserving the CIA's authority to carry out renditions. Some intelligence officials think the tactic could play an expanded role in the war on terrorism, as other programs are dismantled. The Washington Post leads with news that Tom Daschle waited nearly a month after his cabinet nomination before telling Barack Obama about his tax problems. The NYT is excited. The paper says yesterday's provincial elections in Iraq point to a "new era"; "the mood has changed"; "the world is not the same"; "whatever happens next, Iraq will not return to the way it was." But wait! "This is not to suggest that the war is over," adds the Times, suddenly remembering how unpredictable the country can be. To continue reading, click here. Roger McShane writes for the Economist online. Join the Fray: our reader discussion forum What did you think of this article? POST A MESSAGE \| READ MESSAGES Also In Slate The Week's Best Editorial Cartoons The Pope Will Regret Letting Those Right-Wing Bishops Back Into the Church Want To Be President of Somalia? Send $2,000 to This Hotel in Djibouti.	Advertisement
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In December 2006, Obama spoke at a New Hampshire event celebrating Democratic Party midterm election victories in the first-in-the-nation U.S. presidential primary state. "Obama's rapid rise from Illinois state legislator to U.S. " He joined with Sen. Russ Feingold (D-WI) in strengthening restrictions on travel in corporate jets to S.1, the Legislative Transparency and Accountability Act of 2007, which passed the Senate with a 96-2 majority. Obama joined Charles Schumer (D-NY) in sponsoring S. 453, a bill to criminalize deceptive practices in federal elections, including fraudulent flyers and automated phone calls, as witnessed in the 2006 midterm elections. Speculation intensified in October 2006 when Obama first said he had "thought about the possibility" of running for president, departing from earlier statements that he intended to serve out his six-year Senate term through 2010. If elected, Obama would become the first non-white U.S. president. He flew his wife and two daughters from Chicago to join him in a visit to his father's birthplace, a village near Kisumu in rural western Kenya. " Obama writes: "It was because of these newfound understandings—that religious commitment did not require me to suspend critical thinking, disengage from the battle for economic and social justice, or otherwise retreat from the world that I knew and loved—that I was finally able to walk down the aisle of Trinity United Church of Christ one day and be baptized.

55 million for candidates he supports and his own 2010 re-election fund.

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today's papers It's a Numbers Game, and Nobody's Winning By Lydia DePillis Posted Saturday, Feb. 28, 2009, at 5:12 AM ET The New York Times and Wall Street Journal lead with the latest numbers out from the Commerce Department--which douse any hopes one might have harbored for a near-term recovery--and their implications for a stimulus plan that relies on much rosier projections. The Los Angeles Times leads with the local angle on the fiasco; California's unemployment rate topped 10 percent in January, well over the national average of 7.6 percent. The Washington Post leads (and ends) with President Barack Obama's announcement that the U.S. withdrawal from Iraq has a date: August 2010, with a third of current troop levels to remain in place through 2011. Although faster than what the generals had planned pre-election, it's a more cautious timeline than Obama had laid out on the campaign trail; the paper contrasts his strategy of "risk management" and "mitigation" with what it called "breathtakingly bold" action on the economic stimulus. Still, aside from some disappointment on the left, the plan--which got no cover treatment from the NYT--drew broad acceptance, with Republicans pointing towards the surge as what may allow for a successful withdrawal of troops. According to the Post, they will be missed. To continue reading, click here. Lydia DePillis is a writer living in New York. Join the Fray: our reader discussion forum What did you think of this article? POST A MESSAGE \| READ MESSAGES Also In Slate The Obamas and the Great American Tradition of Church Shopping Is It Legal To Send Blood Through the Mail? The Obamas Should Name Their Dog "Government"	Advertisement
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today's papers It's a Numbers Game, and Nobody's Winning By Lydia DePillis Posted Saturday, Feb. 28, 2009, at 5:12 AM ET The New York Times and Wall Street Journal lead with the latest numbers out from the Commerce Department--which douse any hopes one might have harbored for a near-term recovery--and their implications for a stimulus plan that relies on much rosier projections. The Los Angeles Times leads with the local angle on the fiasco; California's unemployment rate topped 10 percent in January, well over the national average of 7.6 percent. The Washington Post leads (and ends) with President Barack Obama's announcement that the U.S. withdrawal from Iraq has a date: August 2010, with a third of current troop levels to remain in place through 2011. Although faster than what the generals had planned pre-election, it's a more cautious timeline than Obama had laid out on the campaign trail; the paper contrasts his strategy of "risk management" and "mitigation" with what it called "breathtakingly bold" action on the economic stimulus. Still, aside from some disappointment on the left, the plan--which got no cover treatment from the NYT--drew broad acceptance, with Republicans pointing towards the surge as what may allow for a successful withdrawal of troops. According to the Post, they will be missed. To continue reading, click here. Lydia DePillis is a writer living in New York. Join the Fray: our reader discussion forum What did you think of this article? POST A MESSAGE \| READ MESSAGES Also In Slate The Obamas and the Great American Tradition of Church Shopping Is It Legal To Send Blood Through the Mail? The Obamas Should Name Their Dog "Government"	Advertisement
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today's papers Barack The Knife By Roger McShane Posted Sunday, Feb. 22, 2009, at 6:03 AM ET The New York Times and Los Angeles Times lead with Barack Obama's first budget and his plan to cut the deficit in half by the end of his term. All of the papers note that the reduction will come primarily from higher taxes on the wealthy and lower spending in Iraq. While the Washington Post fronts the Obama plan, it chooses to lead with the more sensational news of a possible arrest in the eight-year-old murder case of Chandra Levy. The Post has long been infatuated with the Levy case, describing it as "one of the most famous unsolved homicide cases in Washington history." The WP and LAT call the president's first budget "ambitious." Obama hopes to use the plan to make progress on health-care reform and move toward a cap-and-trade system for energy use. But the effort to "cut" (LAT), "slash" (NYT) or merely "trim" (WP) the deficit grabs the headlines. To do this, Obama will let most of George Bush's tax cuts expire in 2011 for those making over $250,000. The Post alone adds a touch of skepticism, noting that some "question the wisdom of announcing a plan to raise taxes in the midst of a recession." On Iraq, Obama had previously expected to save $90 billion a year by withdrawing combat troops. But the NYT says "it is not clear how much any savings would be offset by increased spending in Afghanistan." The full details of the budget won't be released until April. To continue reading, click here. Roger McShane writes for the Economist online. Join the Fray: our reader discussion forum What did you think of this article? POST A MESSAGE \| READ MESSAGES Also In Slate How the Recession Is Crushing American Marriages Is It Obama's Fault the Dow Is Tanking? Fashion Designers Battle Recession With Shoulder Pads	Advertisement
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today's papers "Put This Plan In Motion" By Lydia DePillis Posted Sunday, Feb. 8, 2009, at 6:04 AM ET The New York Times leads with continuing stimulus deb ate in Congress, where the Senate proposal is set to collide with a House bill that currently does more to help states avoid catastrophic cuts in services. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is "very much opposed" to the cuts being made to the Senate version, which was trimmed down from a high of $900 billion to about $827 billion through slashing aid to states, funding for priorities like school construction and broadband wireless in rural areas, as well as President Barack Obama's promised middle-class tax cut. The Los Angeles Times leads with the impact of those cuts in aid to states, which are facing a collective $47.4 billion shortfall this year and $84.3 billion in 2010. On a state-by-state basis, the gaps are often breathtaking in size: Nevada's amounts to 38 percent of its general fund, while Washington's governor made a no-new-taxes pledge in her tough reelection campaign, leaving few options to fill that state's hole besides closing state parks, releasing low-risk prisoners, and "shredding" the state's generous social service programs. To continue reading, click here. Lydia DePillis is a writer living in New York. Join the Fray: our reader discussion forum What did you think of this article? POST A MESSAGE \| READ MESSAGES Also In Slate Did Obama Get Rolled by Senate Republicans? I Think I Have the Worst Boyfriend in the Universe Is the "David After the Dentist" Video Appalling or Hilarious?	Advertisement
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today's papers A New Era In Iraq? By Roger McShane Posted Sunday, Feb. 1, 2009, at 6:03 AM ET The New York Times leads with an upbeat report on Saturday's provincial elections in Iraq, where the U.S. is "already drifting offstage." Despite a decreased American presence on the ground, there were no confirmed deaths as Iraqis voted in 14 of the country's 18 provinces. The Los Angeles Times leads with Barack Obama preserving the CIA's authority to carry out renditions. Some intelligence officials think the tactic could play an expanded role in the war on terrorism, as other programs are dismantled. The Washington Post leads with news that Tom Daschle waited nearly a month after his cabinet nomination before telling Barack Obama about his tax problems. The NYT is excited. The paper says yesterday's provincial elections in Iraq point to a "new era"; "the mood has changed"; "the world is not the same"; "whatever happens next, Iraq will not return to the way it was." But wait! "This is not to suggest that the war is over," adds the Times, suddenly remembering how unpredictable the country can be. To continue reading, click here. Roger McShane writes for the Economist online. Join the Fray: our reader discussion forum What did you think of this article? POST A MESSAGE \| READ MESSAGES Also In Slate The Week's Best Editorial Cartoons The Pope Will Regret Letting Those Right-Wing Bishops Back Into the Church Want To Be President of Somalia? Send $2,000 to This Hotel in Djibouti.	Advertisement
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Barack Obama Will Never Be President

Barack Obama Will Never Be President

Saturday, February 28, 2009

He was overwhelmingly reelected to the Illinois Senate in 1998 and 2002, officially resigning in November 2004, following his election to the U.S. Senate.

Barack Obama

Barack Obama

Barack Obama

Barack Obama

Barack Obama

Barack Obama

Sunday, February 22, 2009

The speech was Obama's introduction to most of America.

Barack Obama

Barack Obama

Barack Obama

Sunday, February 8, 2009

Lugar and Obama inspected a Nunn-Lugar program-supported nuclear warhead destruction facility at Saratov, in southern European Russia.

Barack Obama

Barack Obama

Barack Obama

Thursday, February 5, 2009

Of his early childhood, Obama writes: "That my father looked nothing like the people around me—that he was black as pitch, my mother white as milk—barely registered in my mind.

Barack Obama

Barack Obama

Barack Obama

Sunday, February 1, 2009

His first bill was the "Higher Education Opportunity through Pell Grant Expansion Act.

Barack Obama

Barack Obama

Barack Obama

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