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Barack Obama
United States Senator
from Illinois
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 3 2005
Serving with Richard Durbin
Preceded byPeter Fitzgerald
Member of the Illinois Senate
from the 13th district
In office
1997–2004
Succeeded byKwame Raoul
Personal details
NationalityAmerican
Political partyDemocratic
SpouseMichelle Obama
ChildrenMalia and Sasha
ResidenceChicago, Illinois
Alma mater Columbia University,
Harvard Law School
Signature
Websitewww.barackobama.com

Barack Hussein Obama (Template:PronEng[1]) (born August 4, 1961) is the negro junior United States Senator from Illinois and a leading candidate for the Democratic nomination in the 2008 presidential election.[2][3] He is the fifth African American Senator in U.S. history, the third popularly elected African American Senator, and the only African American currently serving in the U.S. Senate.[4]

Born in Honolulu to a Kenyan father and an American mother, Obama grew up in culturally diverse surroundings. He lived most of his early life in Hawaii. From ages six to ten, he lived in Jakarta, Indonesia. A graduate of Columbia University and Harvard Law School, Obama worked as a community organizer, university lecturer, and civil rights lawyer before running for public office. He served in the Illinois Senate from 1997 to 2004, and after a failed bid for the U.S. Congress in 2000, he launched his campaign for U.S. Senate in 2003.

Obama delivered the keynote address at the 2004 Democratic National Convention while still an Illinois state legislator. He was elected to the U.S. Senate in November 2004 with a landslide 70% of the vote in an election year marked by Republican gains.[5][6] 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 the 110th Congress, he has sponsored legislation on lobbying and electoral fraud, climate change, nuclear terrorism, and care for returned U.S. military personnel.

Since announcing his presidential campaign in February 2007, Obama has emphasized ending the Iraq War, increasing energy independence, and providing universal health care as major priorities.[7] He married in 1992 and has two daughters. He has written two bestselling books: a memoir of his youth titled Dreams from My Father, and The Audacity of Hope, a personal commentary on U.S. politics.[8]

Early life and career

See also: Dreams from My Father

Obama was born on August 4 1961 at The Queen's Medical Center[9][10] in Honolulu, Hawaii to Barack Hussein Obama, Sr. (born in Nyanza Province, Kenya, of Luo ethnicity) and Ann Dunham (born in Wichita, Kansas).[11] His parents met while both were attending the University of Hawaii at Manoa, where his father was enrolled as a foreign student.[12] Obama's parents separated when he was two years old and later divorced.[13] His father went to Harvard University to pursue Ph.D. studies, then returned to Kenya.[14] His mother married Lolo Soetoro, an Indonesian foreign student, and the family moved to Jakarta in 1967.[15] Obama attended Basuki school in Jakarta from ages 6 to 10, where classes were taught in the Indonesian language,[16] which he still speaks passably.[17] He then returned to Honolulu to live with his maternal grandparents while attending Punahou School from the fifth grade until his graduation in 1979.[18] Obama's mother died of ovarian cancer a few months after the publication of his 1995 memoir, Dreams from My Father.[19]

In the memoir, Obama describes his experiences growing up in his mother's American middle class family. His knowledge about his African father, who returned once for a brief visit in 1971, came mainly through family stories and photographs.[14] 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."[20] The book describes his struggles as a young adult to reconcile social perceptions of his multiracial heritage.[21] He wrote that he used alcohol, marijuana, and cocaine during his teenage years to "push questions of who I was out of my mind".[22]

After high school, Obama moved to Los Angeles, where he studied at Occidental College for two years.[23] He then transferred to Columbia University in New York City, where he majored in political science with a specialization in international relations.[24] Obama received his B.A. degree in 1983, then worked at Business International Corporation and NYPIRG before moving to Chicago to take a job as a community organizer.[25] As Director of the Developing Communities Project, he worked with low-income residents in Chicago's Roseland community and the Altgeld Gardens public housing development.[26] He entered Harvard Law School in 1988.[27] In 1990, The New York Times reported his election as the Harvard Law Review's "first black president in its 104-year history".[28] He completed his J.D. degree magna cum laude in 1991.[29] On returning to Chicago, Obama directed a voter registration drive.[29] As an associate attorney with Miner, Barnhill & Galland from 1993 to 1996, he represented community organizers, discrimination claims, and voting rights cases.[30] He was a lecturer of constitutional law at the University of Chicago Law School from 1993 until his election to the U.S. Senate in 2004.[31]

State legislature

Obama was elected to the Illinois State Senate in 1996 from the state's 13th District in the south-side Chicago neighborhood of Hyde Park.[32] In 2000, he made an unsuccessful Democratic primary run for the U.S. House of Representatives seat held by four-term incumbent candidate Bobby Rush.[33] He was reelected to the Illinois Senate in 1998 and 2002, officially resigning in November 2004 following his election to the U.S. Senate.[34][35] As a state legislator, Obama worked with both Democrats and Republicans in drafting successful legislation on ethics and health care reform.[36] He sponsored a law enhancing tax credits for low-income workers, negotiated welfare reform, and promoted increased subsidies for child care.[37] Obama also led the passage of legislation mandating videotaping of homicide interrogations, and a law to monitor racial profiling by requiring police to record the race of drivers they stopped.[37][38] During his 2004 general election campaign for U.S. Senate, Obama won the endorsement of the Illinois Fraternal Order of Police, whose president credited him with having been "immensely helpful in working with police organizations" on death penalty reform.[39] He was 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 the Illinois Born Alive Infants Protection Act.[36][40]

Keynote address at 2004 Democratic National Convention

See also: 2004 Democratic National Convention

Obama wrote and delivered the keynote address at the 2004 Democratic National Convention in Boston, Massachusetts, while still serving as a state legislator.[41] 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. 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. They know we can do better. And they want that choice.

Questioning the Bush administration's management of the Iraq War, Obama spoke of an enlisted Marine, Corporal Seamus Ahern from East Moline, Illinois, asking, "Are we serving Seamus as well as he is serving us?" He continued:

When we send our young men and women into harm's way, we have a solemn obligation not to fudge the numbers or shade the truth about why they're going, to care for their families while they're gone, to tend to the soldiers upon their return, and to never, ever go to war without enough troops to win the war, secure the peace, and earn the respect of the world.

Finally, he spoke for national unity:

The pundits like to slice-and-dice our country into Red States and Blue States; Red States for Republicans, Blue States for Democrats. But I've got news for them too. We worship an awesome God in the Blue States, and we don't like federal agents poking around in our libraries in the Red States. We coach Little League in the Blue States and yes, we got some gay friends in the Red States. There are patriots who opposed the war in Iraq and patriots who supported the war in Iraq. We are one people, all of us pledging allegiance to the stars and stripes, all of us defending the United States of America.[42]

The speech was Obama's introduction to most of America. Its enthusiastic reception at the convention and widespread coverage by national media gave him instant celebrity status.[43]

Senate campaign

Main article: United States Senate election in Illinois, 2004

In 2003, Obama began his run for the U.S. Senate open seat vacated by Peter Fitzgerald. In early opinion polls leading up to the Democratic primary, Obama trailed multimillionaire businessman Blair Hull and Illinois Comptroller Dan Hynes.[44] However, Hull's popularity declined following allegations of domestic abuse.[44] Obama's candidacy was boosted by an advertising campaign featuring images of the late Chicago Mayor Harold Washington and the late U.S. Senator Paul Simon; the support of Simon's daughter; and political endorsements by the Chicago Tribune and Chicago Sun-Times.[45][46] Obama received over 52% of the vote in the March 2004 primary, emerging 29% ahead of his nearest Democratic rival.[47] His opponent in the general election was expected to be Republican primary winner Jack Ryan. However, Ryan withdrew from the race in June 2004, following public disclosure of child custody divorce records containing sexual allegations by Ryan's ex-wife, actress Jeri Ryan.[48] 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.[49] A long-time resident of Maryland, Keyes established legal residency in Illinois with the nomination.[50] Through three televised debates, Obama and Keyes expressed opposing views on stem cell research, abortion, gun control, school vouchers, and tax cuts.[51] In the November 2004 general election, Obama received 70% of the vote to Keyes's 27%, the largest electoral victory in Illinois history.[52]

Senate career

Obama was sworn in as a Senator on January 4, 2005.[53] In a move considered exceptional for a first-term incoming senator, he recruited Pete Rouse, a 30-year veteran of the Washington political scene and former chief of staff to Senate Democratic Leader Tom Daschle, as his chief of staff.[54] Karen Kornbluh, an economist who was deputy chief of staff to former Secretary of the Treasury Robert Rubin, was hired as Obama's policy adviser.[55] Foreign policy advisers include Samantha Power, author on human rights and genocide, and former Clinton administration officials Anthony Lake and Susan Rice.[56] Obama holds assignments on the Senate Committees for Foreign Relations; Health, Education, Labor and Pensions; Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs; and Veterans' Affairs,[57] and is a member of the Congressional Black Caucus.[58]

Congressional ratings for Senator Obama's votes by a number of interest groups are tracked by Project Vote Smart.[59]

109th Congress

Obama sponsored 152 bills and resolutions brought before the 109th Congress in 2005 and 2006, and cosponsored another 427.[60][61] Obama took an active role in the Senate's drive for improved border security and immigration reform. Beginning in 2005, Obama co-sponsored the "Secure America and Orderly Immigration Act" introduced by Sen. John McCain (R-AZ).[62] He later added three amendments to S. 2611, the "Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act," sponsored by Sen. Arlen Specter (R-PA).[63][64] S. 2611 passed the Senate in May 2006, but failed to gain majority support in the U.S. House of Representatives.[65] In September 2006, Obama supported a related bill, the Secure Fence Act, authorizing construction of fencing and other security improvements along the Mexico–United States border.[66] President Bush signed the Secure Fence Act into law in October 2006, calling it "an important step toward immigration reform."[67]

Senate bill sponsors Tom Coburn (R-OK) and Obama discuss the Coburn-Obama Transparency Act.[68]

Partnering first with Sen. Richard Lugar (R-IN), and then with Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK), Obama successfully introduced two initiatives bearing his name. "Lugar-Obama" expands the Nunn-Lugar cooperative threat reduction concept to conventional weapons, including shoulder-fired missiles and anti-personnel mines.[69][70] The "Coburn-Obama Transparency Act" provides for a web site, managed by the Office of Management and Budget, listing all organizations receiving Federal funds from 2007 onward, and providing breakdowns by the agency allocating the funds, the dollar amount given, and the purpose of the grant or contract.[71][72] In December 2006, President Bush signed into law the "Democratic Republic of the Congo Relief, Security, and Democracy Promotion Act," marking the first federal legislation to be enacted with Obama as its primary sponsor.[73]

As a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Obama made official trips to Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. In August 2005, he traveled to Russia, Ukraine, and Azerbaijan. The trip focused on strategies to control the world's supply of conventional weapons, biological weapons, and weapons of mass destruction as a first defense against potential terrorist attacks.[74] Following meetings with U.S. military in Kuwait and Iraq in January 2006, Obama visited Jordan, Israel, and the Palestinian territories. At a meeting with Palestinian students two weeks before Hamas won the legislative election, Obama warned that "the U.S. will never recognize winning Hamas candidates unless the group renounces its fundamental mission to eliminate Israel."[75] He left for his third official trip in August 2006, traveling to South Africa, Kenya, Djibouti, Ethiopia and Chad. In a nationally televised speech at the University of Nairobi, he spoke forcefully on the influence of ethnic rivalries and corruption in Kenya.[76] The speech touched off a public debate among rival leaders, some formally challenging Obama's remarks as unfair and improper, others defending his positions.[77][78]

110th Congress

In the first month of the newly Democratic-controlled 110th Congress, Obama worked with Russ Feingold (D–WI) to eliminate gifts of travel on corporate jets by lobbyists to members of Congress and require disclosure of bundled campaign contributions under the "Honest Leadership and Open Government Act", which was signed into law in September 2007.[79] He 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.[80] Obama's energy initiatives scored pluses and minuses with environmentalists, who welcomed his sponsorship with John McCain (R-AZ) of a climate change bill to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by two-thirds by 2050, but were skeptical of his support for a bill promoting liquefied coal production.[81] Obama also introduced the "Iraq War De-Escalation Act", a bill to cap troop levels in Iraq, begin phased redeployment, and remove all combat brigades from Iraq before April 2008.[82]

Later in 2007, Obama sponsored with Kit Bond (R-MO) an amendment to the 2008 Defense Authorization Act adding safeguards for personality disorder military discharges, and calling for a review by the Government Accounting Office following reports that the procedure had been used inappropriately to reduce government costs.[83] He sponsored the "Iran Sanctions Enabling Act" supporting divestment of state pension funds from Iran's oil and gas industry,[84] and joined Chuck Hagel (R-NE) in introducing legislation to reduce risks of nuclear terrorism. A provision from the Obama-Hagel bill was passed by Congress in December 2007 as an amendment to the State-Foreign Operations appropriations bill.[85] Obama also sponsored a Senate amendment to the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) to provide one year of job protection for family members caring for soldiers with combat-related injuries.[86] After passing both houses of Congress with bipartisan majorities, SCHIP was vetoed by President Bush in early October 2007, a move Obama said "shows a callousness of priorities that is offensive to the ideals we hold as Americans."[87]

Presidential campaign

Main article: Barack Obama presidential campaign, 2008

Template:Future election candidate

Obama on stage with his wife and two daughters just before announcing his presidential campaign on February 10, 2007.[88]

In February 2007, standing before the Old State Capitol building in Springfield, Illinois, Obama announced his candidacy for the 2008 U.S. presidential election.[2] Describing his working life in Illinois, and symbolically linking his presidential campaign to Abraham Lincoln's 1858 House Divided speech, Obama said: "That is why, in the shadow of the Old State Capitol, where Lincoln once called on a house divided to stand together, where common hopes and common dreams still live, I stand before you today to announce my candidacy for President of the United States of America."[89] Speaking at a Democratic National Committee meeting one week before the February announcement, Obama called for putting an end to negative campaigning. "This can't be about who digs up more skeletons on who, who makes the fewest slip-ups on the campaign trail," he said. "We owe it to the American people to do more than that."[90]

Obama's campaign raised US$58 million during the first half of 2007, topping all other candidates and exceeding previous records for the first six months of any year before an election year.[91] Small donors, those contributing in increments of less than $200, accounted for $16.4 million of Obama's record-breaking total, more than for any other Democratic candidate.[92] His campaign reported adding 108,000 new donors through third quarter fundraising, for a total of 365,000 individual contributors in the first nine months.[93] Amid concerns for his safety as the first black candidate seen as having a viable chance of being elected president, the U.S. government assigned Secret Service protection to Obama 18 months before the general election.[94]

In October 2007, with two months remaining before the Iowa Democratic caucuses and New Hampshire primary and national opinion polls showing him trailing Hillary Clinton, Obama began directly charging his top rival with failing to clearly state her political positions.[95] Campaigning in Iowa, he told the Washington Post that as the Democratic nominee he would draw more support than Clinton from independent and Republican voters in the general election.[96] At Iowa's Jefferson-Jackson fundraising dinner in November 2007, Obama expanded the theme, saying that his presidency would "bring the country together in a new majority" to seek solutions to long-standing problems.[97] Attended by 3,000 supporters, including representatives from each of Iowa's 99 counties, the event was described by an Obama campaign press secretary as a "pretty good dry run" in preparation for the 2008 primary season's first electoral contest.[98]

Obama won the January 3, 2008 Iowa Democratic caucuses with 38% support, ahead of 30% for John Edwards and 29% for Hillary Clinton.[99] Although polls and pundits alike predicted a definitive victory by as much as 13 percentage points in the January 8, 2008 New Hampshire primary, Obama came in second with 37% of the vote to Hillary Rodham Clinton's 39% and John Edwards' 17%.[100] As a result of the primary, Obama and Clinton each received nine delegates.[100]

Political advocacy

See also: Political positions of Barack Obama
Obama speaking at a rally in Conway, South Carolina on August 23 2007.[101]

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 [...] we should be guided by what works."[102] Speaking before the National Press Club in April 2005, he defended the New Deal social welfare policies of Franklin D. Roosevelt, associating Republican proposals to establish private accounts for Social Security with social Darwinism.[103] In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Obama spoke out against government indifference to growing economic class divisions, calling on both political parties to take action to restore the social safety net for the poor.[104] Shortly before announcing his presidential campaign, Obama told the health care advocacy group Families USA: "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."[105]

Meeting with Google employees in November 2007, Obama pledged to appoint a Chief Technology Officer to oversee the U.S. government's management of IT resources and promote wider access to government information and decision making.[106] Reaffirming his commitment to net neutrality legislation, Obama said "once providers start to privilege some applications or web sites over others, then the smaller voices get squeezed out, and we all lose."[107] Campaigning in New Hampshire, he announced an $18 billion plan for investments in early childhood education, math and science education, and expanded summer learning opportunities.[108] Obama's campaign distinguished his proposals to reward teachers for performance from traditional merit pay systems, assuring unions that changes would be pursued through the collective bargaining process.[109]

At the Tax Policy Center in September 2007, he blamed special interests for distorting the U.S. tax code. "We are taxing income from work at nearly twice the level that we're taxing gains for investors," Obama said. "We've lost the balance between work and wealth."[110] His plan would eliminate taxes for senior citizens with incomes of less than $50,000 a year, repeal tax cuts said to favor the wealthy, close corporate tax loopholes and restrict offshore tax havens, and simplify filing of income tax returns by pre-filling wage and bank information already collected by the IRS.[111] Announcing his presidential campaign's energy plan in October 2007, Obama said: "Businesses don’t own the sky, the public does, and if we want them to stop polluting it, we have to put a price on all pollution." He proposed a cap and trade auction system to restrict carbon emissions and a 10 year program of investments in new energy sources to reduce U.S. dependence on imported oil.[112]

Obama was an early opponent of Bush administration policies on Iraq. In the fall of 2002, before the start of the Iraq War, he addressed an anti-war rally in Chicago, saying:

I know that an invasion of Iraq without a clear rationale and without strong international support will only fan the flames of the Middle East, and encourage the worst, rather than best, impulses of the Arab world, and strengthen the recruitment arm of al-Qaeda. I am not opposed to all wars. I'm opposed to dumb wars.[113]

Speaking to the Chicago Council on Global Affairs in November 2006, Obama called for a "phased redeployment of U.S. troops from Iraq" and an opening of diplomatic dialogue with Syria and Iran.[114] In a March 2007 speech to 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."[115] Detailing his strategy for fighting global terrorism in August 2007, Obama said "it was a terrible mistake to fail to act" against a 2005 meeting of al-Qaeda leaders that U.S. intelligence had confirmed to be taking place in Pakistan's Federally Administered Tribal Areas. He said that as president he would not miss a similar opportunity.[116]

Obama addressed the Save Darfur rally at the National Mall in Washington, D.C. on April 30 2006.[117]

In a December 2005 Washington Post opinion column, and at the Save Darfur rally in April 2006, Obama called for more assertive action to oppose genocide in the Darfur region of Sudan.[118] He has divested $180,000 in personal holdings of Sudan-related stock, and has urged divestment from companies doing business in Iran.[119] In the July-August 2007 issue of Foreign Affairs, Obama called for an outward looking post-Iraq War foreign policy and the renewal of American military, diplomatic, and moral leadership in the world. Saying "we can neither retreat from the world nor try to bully it into submission," he called on Americans to "lead the world, by deed and by example."[120]

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."[121] In December 2006, he joined Sen. Sam Brownback (R-KS) at the "Global Summit on AIDS and the Church" organized by church leaders Kay and Rick Warren.[122] Together with Warren and Brownback, Obama took an HIV test, as he had done in Kenya less than four months earlier.[123] He encouraged "others in public life to do the same" to show "there is no shame in going for an HIV test."[124] Before the conference, 18 pro-life groups published an open letter stating, in reference to Obama's support for legal abortion: "In the strongest possible terms, we oppose Rick Warren's decision to ignore Senator Obama's clear pro-death stance and invite him to Saddleback Church anyway."[125] Addressing over 8,000 United Church of Christ members in June 2007, Obama challenged "so-called leaders of the Christian Right" for being "all too eager to exploit what divides us."[126]

Personal life

Obama met his future wife, Michelle Robinson, in 1988 when he was employed as a summer associate at the Chicago law firm of Sidley & Austin.[127] Assigned for three months as Obama's advisor at the firm, Robinson joined him at group social functions, but declined his initial offers to date.[128] They began dating later that summer, became engaged in 1991, and were married in October 1992.[129] The couple's first daughter, Malia Ann, was born in 1999, followed by a second daughter, Natasha ("Sasha"), in 2001.[130] Applying the proceeds of a $2 million book deal, the family paid off debts in 2005 and moved from a Hyde Park, Chicago condominium to their current $1.6-million house in neighboring Kenwood.[131] The house purchase and subsequent acquisition of an adjoining strip of land drew media scrutiny in November 2006 because of financial links with controversial Illinois businessman Antoin Rezko.[132]

Obama plays basketball, a sport he participated in as a member of his high school's varsity team.[133][134] Before announcing his presidential candidacy, he began a well-publicized effort to quit smoking. "I've never been a heavy smoker," Obama told the Chicago Tribune. "I've quit periodically over the last several years. I've got an ironclad demand from my wife that in the stresses of the campaign I don't succumb. I've been chewing Nicorette strenuously."[135] Replying to an Associated Press survey of 2008 presidential candidates' personal tastes, he specified "architect" as his alternate career choice and "chili" as his favorite meal to cook.[136] Asked to name a "hidden talent," Obama answered: "I'm a pretty good poker player."[137]

A theme of Obama's keynote address at the 2004 Democratic National Convention, and the title of his 2006 book, The Audacity of Hope, was inspired by his pastor, Rev. Jeremiah Wright.[138] In Chapter 6 of the book, titled "Faith," Obama writes that he "was not raised in a religious household." He describes his mother, raised by non-religious parents, as detached from religion, yet "in many ways the most spiritually awakened person that I have ever known." He describes his Kenyan father as "raised a Muslim," but a "confirmed atheist" by the time his parents met, and his Indonesian stepfather as "a man who saw religion as not particularly useful." 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 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."[139]

Books

The Audacity of Hope

Obama has written two bestselling books. The first, Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance, was published after his graduation from law school and before running for public office. In it he recalls his childhood in Honolulu and Jakarta, college years in Los Angeles and New York City, and his employment as a community organizer in Chicago in the 1980s. The book's last chapters describe his first visit to Kenya, a journey to connect with his Luo family and heritage. 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."[140] Time magazine's Joe Klein wrote that the book "may be the best-written memoir ever produced by an American politician."[141] The audiobook edition earned Obama the 2006 Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album.[142]

His second book, The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream, was published in October 2006, three weeks before the 2006 midterm election. It was an immediate bestseller and rose to the top of the New York Times Best Seller list by early November 2006.[143] The Chicago Tribune credits the large crowds that gathered at book signings with influencing Obama's decision to run for president.[144] Former presidential candidate Gary Hart describes the book as Obama's "thesis submission" for the U.S. presidency: "It presents a man of relative youth yet maturity, a wise observer of the human condition, a figure who possesses perseverance and writing skills that have flashes of grandeur."[145] 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."[146] An Italian translation was published in April 2007 with a preface by Walter Veltroni, Mayor of Rome.[147] Spanish and German editions were published in June 2007.[148]

Cultural and political image

Obama supporters at a campaign rally in Austin, Texas, on February 23 2007.[149]

Supporters and critics have likened Obama's popular image to a cultural Rorschach test, a neutral persona on which people can project their personal histories and aspirations.[150][151] Obama's own stories about his family origins reinforce what a May 2004 New Yorker magazine article described as his "everyman" image.[152] In Dreams from My Father, he ties his maternal family history to possible Native American ancestors and distant relatives of Jefferson Davis, president of the southern Confederacy during the American Civil War.[153] Speaking to an elderly Jewish audience during his 2004 campaign for U.S. Senate, Obama linked the linguistic root of his East African first name Barack to the Hebrew word baruch, meaning "blessed."[154] In an October 2006 interview on The Oprah Winfrey Show, Obama highlighted the diversity of his extended family: "Michelle will tell you that when we get together for Christmas or Thanksgiving, it's like a little mini-United Nations," he said. "I've got relatives who look like Bernie Mac, and I've got relatives who look like Margaret Thatcher. We've got it all."[155]

With his Kenyan father and white American mother, his upbringing in Honolulu and Jakarta, and Ivy League education, Obama's early life experiences differ markedly from those of African American politicians who launched their careers in the 1960s through participation in the civil rights movement.[156] During his Democratic primary campaign for U.S. Congress in 2000, two rival candidates charged that Obama was not sufficiently rooted in Chicago's black neighborhoods to represent constituents' concerns.[157] In January 2007, "The End of Blackness" author Debra Dickerson warned against drawing favorable cultural implications from Obama's political rise. "Lumping us all together," Dickerson wrote in Salon, "erases the significance of slavery and continuing racism while giving the appearance of progress."[158] Film critic David Ehrenstein, writing in a March 2007 Los Angeles Times article, compared the cultural sources of Obama's favorable polling among whites to those of "magical negro" roles played by black actors in Hollywood movies.[159] Expressing puzzlement over questions about whether he is "black enough," Obama told an August 2007 meeting of the National Association of Black Journalists that the debate is not about his physical appearance or his record on issues of concern to black voters. "What it really lays bare," Obama offered, is that "we're still locked in this notion that if you appeal to white folks then there must be something wrong."[160]

Writing about Obama's political image in a March 2007 Washington Post opinion column, Eugene Robinson characterized him as "the personification of both-and," a messenger who rejects "either-or" political choices, and could "move the nation beyond the culture wars" of the 1960s.[161] Obama, who defines himself in The Audacity of Hope as "a Democrat, after all," has been criticized by progressive commentator David Sirota for demonstrating too much "Senate clubbiness", and was encouraged to run for the U.S. presidency by conservative columnist George Will.[162] 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 avoid becoming too quickly excited about Obama's still early political career.[163] Echoing the inaugural address of John F. Kennedy, Obama acknowledged his youthful image, saying in an October 2007 campaign speech, "I wouldn't be here if, time and again, the torch had not been passed to a new generation."[164]

Recognition and honors

An October 2005 article in the British journal New Statesman listed Obama as one of "10 people who could change the world."[165] In 2005 and again in 2007, Time magazine named him one of "the world's most influential people."[166] During his first three years in the U.S. Senate, Obama received Honorary Doctorates of Law from Knox College (2005),[167] University of Massachusetts Boston (2006),[168] Northwestern University (2006),[169] Xavier University of Louisiana (2006),[170] Southern New Hampshire University (2007),[171] and Howard University (2007).[172]

Notes

  1. ^ "How to Pronounce Barack Hussein Obama". Inoglo. Retrieved 2007-12-26. For more about Obama's middle name and its use by political opponents and the media, see: Wallis, David (December 27 2007). "Malice in the Middle: Barack Hussein Obama and the History of Bad Middle Names in Politics". Slate. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  2. ^ a b "Obama Launches Presidential Bid". BBC News. February 10 2007. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) Video at Brightcove.com. Cite error: The named reference "BBC20070210" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  3. ^ Saine, Cindy (December 21 2007). "Economy, Health Care Are Top Domestic Issues for US Voters". Voice of America News. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) For national polling data, see: "White House 2008: Democratic Nomination". Polling Report. Retrieved 2007-12-26. "2008 National Democratic Presidential Primary". Pollster.com. Retrieved 2007-12-26.
  4. ^ "Breaking New Ground: African American Senators". U.S. Senate Historical Office. Retrieved 2007-12-26.
  5. ^ Archibold, Randal C (July 29 2004). "The Illinois Candidate; Day After, Keynote Speaker Finds Admirers Everywhere". New York Times. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  6. ^ "America Votes 2004: U.S. Senate / Illinois". CNN. Retrieved 2007-12-26.
  7. ^ "Barack Obama on the Issues: What Would Be Your Top Three Overall Priorities If Elected?". Washington Post. Retrieved 2007-12-26. See also: Falcone, Michael (December 21 2007). "Obama's 'One Thing'". New York Times. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  8. ^ Memmott, Carol (January 30 2007). "Obama's Books Drive Talk of '08 Presidential Run". USA Today. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  9. ^ "Obama jets into Kenya this week". Eastandard.net. Retrieved 2008-01-08.
  10. ^ "Ancestry of Barack Obama". Retrieved 2008-01-08.
  11. ^ "Meet Barack". BarackObama.com. Retrieved 2008-01-04. See also: Obama (1995), Chapter 1. Throughout his early years, Obama was commonly known at home and school as "Barry Obama." Scharnberg, Kirsten (March 25 2007). "The Not-So-Simple Story of Barack Obama's Youth". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  12. ^ Obama (1995), pp. 9–10. For book excerpts, see "Barack Obama: Creation of Tales". East African. November 1 2004. Retrieved 2008-01-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  13. ^ Obama (1995), pp. 125–126. See also: Jones, Tim (March 27 2007). "Obama's Mom: Not Just a Girl from Kansas". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2008-01-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  14. ^ a b Obama's father died in an auto accident in 1982. Merida, Kevin (December 14 2007). "The Ghost of a Father". Washington Post. Retrieved 2008-01-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) See also: Ochieng, Philip. "From Home Squared to the US Senate: How Barack Obama Was Lost and Found". East African. Retrieved 2008-01-04. {{cite news}}: Text "dateNovember 1 2004" ignored (help) Obama (1995), pp. 5–11 and 62–71. In August 2006, Obama 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. Gnecchi, Nico (August 27 2006). "Obama Receives Hero's Welcome at His Family's Ancestral Village in Kenya". Voice of America. Retrieved 2008-01-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) See also: Cose, Ellis (September 11 2006). "Walking the World Stage". Newsweek. Retrieved 2008-01-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) Wrong, Michela (September 11 2006). "Africa: Kenya Glimpses a New Kind of Hero". New Statesman. Retrieved 2008-01-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  15. ^ Obama's stepfather and Ann Dunham divorced in the late 1970s, and he died of a liver ailment in 1987. Fornek, Scott (September 9 2007). "Lolo Soetoro". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 2008-01-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) They had one daughter together, Maya Soetoro, Obama's half-sister. On his father's side, Obama has two half-sisters and five surviving half-brothers. Sheridan, Michael (January 28 2007). "Secrets of Obama Family Unlocked". Sunday Times (UK). Retrieved 2008-01-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help) See also: Obama (1995), Chapter 2 and Chapters 15–19 (Part 3: Kenya).
  16. ^ Scharnberg, Kirsten (March 25 2007). "The Not-So-Simple Story of Barack Obama's Youth". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2008-01-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help) See also: Barker, Kim (March 25 2007). "Obama Madrassa Myth Debunked". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2008-01-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) Anderton, Trish (June 2007). "Obama's Jakarta Trail". Jakarta Post. Retrieved 2008-01-04. For Obama's own commentary, see Obama (1995), p. 154, and Obama (2006), p. 274.
  17. ^ Newton-Small, Jay (2007-12-18). "Obama's Foreign-Policy Problem". TIME. Retrieved 2008-01-03.
  18. ^ Obama writes: "For my grandparents, my admission into Punahou Academy heralded the start of something grand, an elevation in the family status that they took great pains to let everyone know." Obama (1995), Chapters 3 and 4. See also: Reyes, B. J (February 8 2007). "Punahou Left Lasting Impression on Obama". Honolulu Star-Bulletin. Retrieved 2008-01-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  19. ^ Obama (1995), Preface to the 2004 Edition, p. xi. See also: Suryakusuma, Julia (November 29 2006). "Obama for President... of Indonesia". Jakarta Post. Retrieved 2008-01-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  20. ^ Obama (1995), pp. 9–10.
  21. ^ Obama (1995), Chapters 4 and 5. See also: Serrano, Richard A (March 11 2007). "Obama's Peers Didn't See His Angst" (paid archive). Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2008-01-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  22. ^ "Obama Gets Blunt with N.H. Students". Associated Press. Boston Globe. November 21 2007. Retrieved 2008-01-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) In Dreams from My Father, Obama writes: "Pot had helped, and booze; maybe a little blow when you could afford it." Obama (1995), pp. 93–94. For analysis of the political impact of the quote and Obama's more recent admission that he smoked marijuana as a teenager ("When I was a kid, I inhaled."), see: Romano, Lois (January 3 2007). "Effect of Obama's Candor Remains to Be Seen". Washington Post. Retrieved 2008-01-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) Seelye, Katharine Q (October 24 2006). "Obama Offers More Variations From the Norm". New York Times. Retrieved 2008-01-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  23. ^ "Oxy Remembers "Barry" Obama '83". Occidental College. January 29 2007. Retrieved 2008-01-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) See also: Gordon, Larry (January 29 2007). "Occidental Recalls 'Barry' Obama" (paid archive). Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2008-01-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  24. ^ Boss-Bicak, Shira (January 2005). "Barack Obama '83: Is He the New Face of The Democratic Party?". Columbia College Today. Retrieved 2008-01-04.
  25. ^ Scott, Janny (October 30 2007). "Obama's Account of New York Years Often Differs from What Others Say". New York Times. Retrieved 2008-01-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) See also: Obama (1995), pp. 135–139.
  26. ^ Secter, Bob (March 30 2007). "Portrait of a Pragmatist". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2008-01-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help) See also: Lizza, Ryan (March 19 2007). "The Agitator: Barack Obama's Unlikely Political Education" (alternate link). New Republic. Retrieved 2008-01-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  27. ^ Levenson, Michael (January 28 2007). "At Harvard Law, a Unifying Voice". Boston Globe. Retrieved 2008-01-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help) See also: Heilemann, John (October 22 2007). "When They Were Young". New York Magazine. Retrieved 2008-01-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  28. ^ Butterfield, Fox (February 6 1990). "First Black Elected to Head Harvard's Law Review". New York Times. Retrieved 2008-01-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) See also: Kantor, Jodi (January 28 2007). "In Law School, Obama Found Political Voice". New York Times. Retrieved 2008-01-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  29. ^ a b "Curriculum Vitae". University of Chicago Law School. Retrieved 2008-01-04.
  30. ^ "Law Graduate Obama Got His Start in Civil Rights Practice". Associated Press. International Herald Tribune. February 19 2007. Retrieved 2008-01-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  31. ^ Pallasch, Abdon M (February 12 2007). "Professor Obama was a Listener, Students Say". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 2008-01-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  32. ^ Jackson, David (April 3 2007). "Obama Knows His Way Around a Ballot". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  33. ^ Scott, Janny (September 9 2007). "A Streetwise Veteran Schooled Young Obama". New York Times. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  34. ^ "13th District: Barack Obama". Illinois State Senate Democrats. August 24 2000. Archived from the original on 2000-08-24. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) "13th District: Barack Obama". Illinois State Senate Democrats. October 9 2004. Archived from the original on 2004-10-09. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  35. ^ Cohen, Jodi S (November 7 2004). "Obama's Springfield Seat Goes to Lawyer". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  36. ^ a b Slevin, Peter (February 9, 2007). "Obama Forged Political Mettle in Illinois Capitol". Washington Post. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) See also: "Obama Record May Be Gold Mine for Critics". Associated Press. CBS News. January 17 2007. Retrieved 2007-08-16. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) "In-Depth Look at Obama's Political Career". CLTV. Chicago Tribune. February 9, 2007. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) (video) Cite error: The named reference "Slevin20070209" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  37. ^ a b Scott, Janny (July 30 2007). "In Illinois, Obama Proved Pragmatic and Shrewd". New York Times. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) Cite error: The named reference "NYT2007-07-30" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  38. ^ See also: Pearson, Rick (May 3 2007). "Careful Steps, Looking Ahead". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  39. ^ Youngman, Sam (March 14 2007). "Obama's Crime Votes Are Fodder for Rivals". The Hill. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help) See also: "US Presidential Candidate Obama Cites Work on State Death Penalty Reforms". Associated Press. International Herald Tribune. November 12 2007. Retrieved 2007-11-18. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  40. ^ Chase, John (October 4 2004). "A Big Split Over Abortion, Stem Cells". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help) See also: Youngman, Sam (February 15 2007). "Abortion Foes Target Obama Because of His Vote Record on Illinois Legislation". The Hill. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  41. ^ For details about the speech's genesis and delivery, see: Boss-Bicak, Shira (January 2005). "Barack Obama '83: Is He the New Face of The Democratic Party?". Columbia College Today. Retrieved 2007-09-30. See also: Bernstein, David (June 2007). "The Speech". Chicago Magazine. Retrieved 2007-09-30.
  42. ^ Obama, Barack (July 27 2004). "Keynote Address at the 2004 Democratic National Convention". BarackObama.com. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) Video at Brightcove.TV.
  43. ^ Wolf, Richard (October 22 2006). "Illinois' Obama Revisits Idea of 2008 Run for White House". USA Today. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  44. ^ a b Mendell, David (March 17, 2004). "Obama Routs Democratic Foes; Ryan Tops Crowded GOP Field". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  45. ^ Fornek, Scott (March 18, 2004). "Obama's Appeal Spans Racial Lines". Chicago Sun-Times. at Find Articles. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  46. ^ Hayes, Christopher (March 17, 2004). "Check Bounce". TNR Online. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) (alternate site)
  47. ^ Davey, Monica (May 17 2004). "From Crowded Field, Democrats Choose State Legislator to Seek Senate Seat". New York Times. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) See also: Jackson, John S (August 2006). "The Making of a Senator: Barack Obama and the 2004 Illinois Senate Race" (PDF). Occasional Paper of the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute. Southern Illinois University. Retrieved 2007-09-30.
  48. ^ "Ryan Drops Out of Senate race in Illinois". CNN. June 25, 2004. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  49. ^ Lannan, Maura Kelly (August 9, 2004). "Alan Keyes Enters U.S. Senate Race in Illinois Against Rising Democratic Star". Associated Press. Union-Tribune (San Diego). Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  50. ^ Liam, Ford (August 13, 2004). "Keyes Sets Up House in Cal City". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  51. ^ For debate transcripts and video, see Alan Keyes Archives: "Alan Keyes and Barack Obama debate, hosted by Illinois Radio Network". October 12 2004. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) "U.S. Senate debate sponsored by the League of Women Voters in Illinois". October 21 2004. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) "Debate sponsored by WTTW and the City Club of Chicago". October 26 2004. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  52. ^ "America Votes 2004: U.S. Senate / Illinois". CNN. Retrieved 2007-09-30. Slevin, Peter (November 13 2007). "For Obama, a Handsome Payoff in Political Gambles". Washington Post. Retrieved 2007-11-18. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  53. ^ "Barack Obama Sworn in to U.S. Senate". WLS-TV (ABC 7, Chicago). Retrieved 2007-09-30.
  54. ^ Bacon Jr., Perry (August 27 2007). "The Outsider's Insider". Washington Post. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  55. ^ Enda, Jodi (February 5, 2006). "Great Expectations". The American Prospect. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  56. ^ Traub, James (November 4 2007). "Is (His) Biography (Our) Destiny?". New York Times. Retrieved 2007-11-06. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) King, Neil (September 5 2007). "Obama Tones Foreign-Policy Muscle". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 2007-11-06. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) Sweet, Lynn (May 10 2007). "Obama Taps Influential Foreign Policy Experts". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 2007-11-06. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  57. ^ "Committee Assignments". Barack Obama U.S. Senate Office. Retrieved 2007-09-30.
  58. ^ "Member Info". Congressional Black Caucus. Retrieved 2007-09-30. See also: Zeleny, Jeff (June 26 2005). "When It Comes to Race, Obama Makes His Point—With Subtlety". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  59. ^ ""Senator Barack Obama (IL)"". Project Vote Smart. Retrieved 2008-01-06.
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  65. ^ "Immigration Bill Divides House, Senate". USA Today. September 22, 2006. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  66. ^ "Latinos Upset Obama Voted for Border Fence". CBS 2 (Chicago). November 20 2006. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  67. ^ "President Bush Signs Secure Fence Act". White House. October 26 2006. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  68. ^ "President Bush Signs Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act". White House. September 26 2006. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  69. ^ U.S. Senate, 109th Congress, 2nd Session (May 25 2006). "S. 2566, Cooperative Proliferation Detection, Interdiction Assistance, and Conventional Threat Reduction Act of 2006". Thomas. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) See also: Lugar, Richard G. (December 3, 2005). "Junkyard Dogs of War". Washington Post. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  70. ^ "Lugar-Obama Nonproliferation Legislation Signed into Law by the President". Richard Lugar U.S. Senate Office. January 11, 2007. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) The Lugar-Obama initiative subsequently received $48 million in funding. "Obama, Lugar Secure Funding for Implementation of Nonproliferation Law". Richard Lugar U.S. Senate Office. June 28 2007. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  71. ^ U.S. Senate, 109th Congress, 2nd Session (April 6 2006). "S. 2590, Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006". Thomas. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  72. ^ "President Bush Signs Coburn-Obama Transparency Act". Tom Coburn U.S. Senate Office. September 26 2006. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  73. ^ U.S. Senate, 109th Congress, 2nd Session (January 3 2006). "S. 2125, Democratic Republic of the Congo Relief, Security, and Democracy Promotion Act". Thomas. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  74. ^ Larson, Christina (September 2006). "Hoosier Daddy: What Rising Democratic Star Barack Obama Can Learn from an Old Lion of the GOP". The Washington Monthly. Retrieved 2007-09-30.
  75. ^ Goudie, Chuck (January 12, 2006). "Obama Meets with Arafat's Successor". ABC 7 News (Chicago). Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  76. ^ "Obama Slates Kenya for Fraud". News24.com. August 28, 2006. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  77. ^ Wamalwa, Chris (September 2, 2006). "Envoy Hits at Obama Over Graft Remark". The Standard (Nairobi). Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  78. ^ Moracha, Vincent (September 4, 2006). "Leaders Support Obama on Graft Claims". The Standard (Nairobi). Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  79. ^ Weixel, Nathaniel (November 15 2007). "Feingold, Obama Go After Corporate Jet Travel". The Hill. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) Weixel, Nathaniel (December 5 2007). "Lawmakers Press FEC on Bundling Regulation". The Hill. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) See also: "Federal Election Commission Announces Plans to Issue New Regulations to Implement the Honest Leadership and Open Government Act of 2007". Federal Election Commission. September 24 2007. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  80. ^ Stern, Seth (January 31 2007). "Obama-Schumer Bill Proposal Would Criminalize Voter Intimidation". CQPolitics.com. New York Times. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) U.S. Senate, 110th Congress, 1st Session (January 31 2007). "S. 453, Deceptive Practices and Voter Intimidation Prevention Act of 2007". Thomas. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) See also: "Honesty in Elections" (editorial). New York Times. January 31 2007. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  81. ^ H. Josef, Hebert (January 29 2007). "Congress Begins Tackling Climate Issues". Associated Press. CBS News. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) Williamson, Elizabeth (January 10 2007). "The Green Gripe With Obama: Liquefied Coal Is Still... Coal". Washington Post. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  82. ^ Krystin, E. Kasak (February 7 2007). "Obama Introduces Measure to Bring Troops Home". Medill News Service. nwi.com. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) U.S. Senate, 110th Congress, 1st Session (January 30 2007). "S. 433, Iraq War De-Escalation Act of 2007". Thomas. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  83. ^ "Obama, Bond Hail New Safeguards on Military Personality Disorder Discharges, Urge Further Action". Kit Bond U.S. Senate Office. October 1 2007. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) See also: Dine, Philip (November 30 2007). "Bond Calls for Review of Military Discharges". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  84. ^ U.S. Senate, 110th Congress, 1st Session (May 17 2007). "S. 1430, Iran Sanctions Enabling Act". Thomas. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) See also: Graham-Silverman, Adam (September 12 2007). "Despite Flurry of Action in House, Congress Unlikely to Act Against Iran". CQ Today. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  85. ^ "Obama, Schiff Provision to Create Nuclear Threat Reduction Plan Approved". Barack Obama U.S. Senate Office. December 20 2007. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  86. ^ "Senate Passes Obama, McCaskill Legislation to Provide Safety Net for Families of Wounded Service Members". Barack Obama U.S. Senate Office. August 2 2007. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  87. ^ Pugh, Tony (October 4 2007). "Battles Set After Health Bill Veto". Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  88. ^ For other photos of this event, see: "Presidential Campaign Announcement" (photo gallery). Barack Obama, Flickr. February 10 2007. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  89. ^ "Presidential Campaign Announcement" (video). Obama for America. Brightcove.TV. February 10 2007. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  90. ^ "Barack Obama at the DNC Winter 2007 Meeting" (video). Democratic National Committee. February 2 2007. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) Full text from CQ Transcripts Wire. Retrieved on 2007-12-26. See also: Harris, Paul (February 4 2007). "The Obama Revolution". Guardian Unlimited. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  91. ^ Malone, Jim (July 2 2007). "Obama Fundraising Suggests Close Race for Party Nomination". Voice of America. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  92. ^ Cummings, Jeanne (September 26 2007). "Small Donors Rewrite Fundraising Handbook". Politico. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  93. ^ Cooper, Michael (October 16 2007). "Democratic Candidates Keep Outraising Republicans". New York Times. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  94. ^ Kennedy, Helen (May 4 2007). "Obama Gets Earliest-Ever Secret Service Detail". New York Daily News. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  95. ^ Newton-Small, Jay (October 28 2007). "Obama (Sort of) Takes the Gloves Off". Time. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) Nagourney, Adam (October 28 2007). "Obama Rolls Out Aggressive Approach to Clinton's Campaign". International Herald Tribune. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  96. ^ Balz, Dan (November 9 2007). "On Campaign Bus, Obama Opens Up About Challengers". Washington Post. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  97. ^ "Remarks of Senator Barack Obama: Iowa Jefferson-Jackson Dinner". BarackObama.com. November 10 2007. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) C-SPAN video at YouTube.
  98. ^ Anburajan, Aswini (November 11 2007). "Obama Shows Organizational Strength". MSNBC. Retrieved 2007-12-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  99. ^ Obama, Huckabee win Iowa caucuses CNN.com, January 3, 2008
  100. ^ a b CNN (2009-01-09). "CNN final results". CNN. {{cite news}}: |author= has generic name (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help); Text "accessdate-2008-01-10" ignored (help)
  101. ^ Foster, Jessica (August 24 2007). "Obama Impresses Crowd at CCU". Sun News. MyrtleBeachOnline. Retrieved 2007-10-24. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help) Video at Brightcove.TV.
  102. ^ Obama (2006), p. 159.
  103. ^ Franklin, Ben A. (June 1 2005). "The Fifth Black Senator in U.S. History Makes F.D.R. His Icon". Washington Spectator. Retrieved 2007-10-24. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  104. ^ Zeleny, Jeff (September 12 2005). "Judicious Obama Turns Up Volume". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2007-10-24. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  105. ^ Pickler, Nedra (January 25 2007). "Obama Calls for Universal Health Care within Six Years". Associated Press. Union-Tribune (San Diego). Retrieved 2007-10-24. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help) Obama's campaign published a detailed health care reform plan in May 2007. Tumulty, Karen (May 29 2007). "Obama Channels Hillary on Health Care". Time. Retrieved 2007-10-24. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) See also: "Creating a Healthcare System that Works". BarackObama.com. Retrieved 2007-10-24.
  106. ^ Kurtzman, Laura (November 14 2007). "Obama Talks to the Tech Crowd at Google Town Hall". Associated Press. SFGate.com. Retrieved 2007-11-25. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  107. ^ Mark, Roy (November 15 2007). "Obama Promises Federal Technology Czar". eWeek. Retrieved 2007-11-25. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  108. ^ Schoenberg, Shira (November 21 2007). "Obama Shares School Plan". Concord Monitor. Retrieved 2007-11-25. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  109. ^ Davis, Teddy (November 20 2007). "Obama Bucks Party Line on Education". ABC News. Retrieved 2007-11-25. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  110. ^ "A Speech On the Economy, Opportunity and Tax Policy with Senator Barack Obama". Tax Policy Center. September 18 2007. Retrieved 2007-11-18. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  111. ^ "Obama Tax Plan: $80 Billion in Cuts, Five-Minute Filings". CNN. September 18 2007. Retrieved 2007-11-18. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  112. ^ Zeleny, Jeff (October 9 2007). "Obama Proposes Capping Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Making Polluters Pay". New York Times. Retrieved 2007-10-24. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  113. ^ Obama, Barack (October 26 2002). "Remarks of Illinois State Sen. Barack Obama Against Going to War with Iraq". BarackObama.com. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  114. ^ For audio and text, see: Obama, Barack (November 20 2006). "A Way Forward in Iraq". Chicago Council on Global Affairs. Retrieved 2007-11-25. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  115. ^ Obama, Barack (March 2 2007). "AIPAC Policy Forum Remarks". Barack Obama U.S. Senate Office. Retrieved 2007-11-25. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) For Obama's 2004 Senate campaign remarks on possible missile strikes against Iran, see: Mendell, David (September 25 2004). "Obama Would Consider Missile Strikes on Iran". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2007-11-25. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  116. ^ "Obama Warns Pakistan on Al-Qaeda". BBC News. August 1 2007. Retrieved 2007-11-25. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) For video and text of the speech, see: "Policy Address on Terrorism by The Honorable Barack Obama, United States Senator from Illinois". Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. August 1 2007. Retrieved 2007-11-25. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) For details of the aborted 2005 military operation, see Mazzetti, Mark (July 8 2007). "Rumsfeld Called Off 2005 Plan to Capture Top Qaeda Figures". International Herald Tribune. Retrieved 2007-11-25. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  117. ^ Hunt, Kasie (May 1 2006). "Celebrities, Activists Rally Against Darfur Genocide". USA Today. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) For excerpts from Obama's speech, see: "More Must Be Done in Darfur". The Hill. April 30 2006. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  118. ^ Obama, Barack (December 27 2005). "Policy Adrift on Darfur". Washington Post. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help) Doyle, Jim (May 1 2006). "Tens of Thousands Rally for Darfur". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  119. ^ Kuhnhenn, Jim (May 17 2007). "Giuliani, Edwards Have Sudan Holdings". Associated Press. SFGate.com. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) Obama, Barack (August 30 2007). "Hit Iran Where It Hurts". New York Daily News. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  120. ^ Obama, Barack (July–August 2007). "Renewing American Leadership". Foreign Affairs. Retrieved 2007-09-30.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: date format (link)
  121. ^ Lerner, Michael (July 3 2006). "U.S. Senator Barack Obama Critiques Democrats' Religiophobia". Tikkun Magazine. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) "Sen. Barack Obama: Call to Renewal Keynote Address". Beliefnet. June 28 2006. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  122. ^ Gibson, Manda (June 28 2006). "At Global AIDS Summit, Churches Challenged to Take the Lead". PurposeDriven.com. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  123. ^ "Screaming Crowds Welcome U.S. Senator 'Home'". CNN. August 27, 2006. Retrieved 2007-10-14. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  124. ^ Obama, Barack (December 1 2006). "Race Against Time—World AIDS Day Speech". Obama U.S. Senate Office. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  125. ^ "Rick Warren/Barack Obama AIDS Partnership Must End, Say Pro-Life Groups". Christian Newswire Press Release. November 28 2006. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) See also: Van Biema, David (December 1 2006). "The Real Losers in the Obama-Warren Controversy". Time. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  126. ^ "Barack Obama: Faith Has Been 'Hijacked'". Associated Press. CBS News. June 24 2007. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help) See also: Brody, David (July 30 2007). "Obama to CBN News: We're No Longer Just a Christian Nation". Christian Broadcasting Network. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  127. ^ Obama (2006), pp. 327–332. See also: Tucker, Eric (March 1 2007). "Family Ties: Brown Coach, Barack Obama". Associated Press. ABC News. Retrieved 2007-12-02. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  128. ^ Obama (2006), p. 329.
  129. ^ Fornek, Scott (October 3 2007). "Michelle Obama: 'He Swept Me Off My Feet'". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 2007-12-02. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  130. ^ Obama (1995), p. 440, and Obama (2006), pp. 339–340. See also: Rossi, Rosalind (January 21 2007). "The Woman Behind Obama". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 2007-12-02. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  131. ^ Zeleny, Jeff (December 24 2005). "The First Time Around: Sen. Obama's Freshman Year". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2007-12-02. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  132. ^ Slevin, Peter (December 17 2006). "Obama Says He Regrets Land Deal With Fundraiser". Washington Post. Retrieved 2007-12-02. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  133. ^ Kantor, Jodi (June 1 2007). "One Place Where Obama Goes Elbow to Elbow". New York Times. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  134. ^ Dan Morris, Neal Karlinsky. "The 'Rat-Ballers': Obama's High School Crew". Nightline. ABC News. Retrieved 2007-09-30.
  135. ^ Parsons, Christi (February 6 2007). "Obama Launches an '07 Campaign—To Quit Smoking". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  136. ^ "Questions for the Candidates". Associated Press. USA Today. May 15 2007. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  137. ^ "Gambling Buddies: Obama Flush with Poker Prowess". Associated Press. CNN. September 24 2007. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  138. ^ Kantor, Jodi (April 30 2007). "A Candidate, His Minister and the Search for Faith". New York Times. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) See also: Obama (1995), pp. 292–295.
  139. ^ Obama (2006), pp. 202–208. Portions excerpted in: Obama, Barack (October 23 2006). "My Spiritual Journey". TIME. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) See also: Guess, J. Bennett (February 9 2007). "Barack Obama, Candidate for President, is 'UCC'". United Church News. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  140. ^ Obama (1995), p. vii.
  141. ^ Klein, Joe (October 23 2006). "The Fresh Face". Time. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  142. ^ Boliek, Brooks (September 6, 2006). "Sen. Obama Finally Gets His Grammy". Reuters/Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  143. ^ Bosman, Julie (November 9 2006). "Obama's New Book Is a Surprise Best Seller". New York Times. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  144. ^ Dorning, Mike (June 12 2007). "Carefully Crafting the Obama 'Brand'". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  145. ^ Hart, Gary (December 24 2006). "American Idol". New York Times. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  146. ^ Tomasky, Michael (November 30 2006). "The Phenomenon". New York Review of Books. Internet Archive. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  147. ^ "L'Audacia Della Speranza. Il Sogno Americano Per Un Mondo Nuovo". Libreria Rizzoli. Retrieved 2007-09-30.
  148. ^ Lobb, Annelena (June 19 2007). "Obama, en Español". Wall Street Journal Online. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help) "Riemann - Barack Obama - Hoffnung wagen". Riemann. June 2007. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  149. ^ Slater, Wayne (February 24 2007). "Obama Reels in Austin Crowd". Dallas Morning News. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) See also: Elliott, Philip (May 28 2007). "Obama Measuring Campaign Success not Just in Cash, but Crowds Too". Associated Press. Boston Globe. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  150. ^ Enda, Jodi (February 5 2006). "Great Expectations". The American Prospect. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) See also: Graff, Garrett M. (November 1 2006). "The Legend of Barack Obama". Washingtonian. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  151. ^ Podhoretz, John (December 12 2006). "Obama: Rorschach Candidate". New York Post. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  152. ^ Finnegan, William (24 May 2004). "The Candidate: How the Son of a Kenyan Economist Became an Illinois Everyman". New Yorker. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) See also: Tilove, Jonathan (February 8 2007). "In Obama Candidacy, America Examines Itself". Times-Picayune (New Orleans). Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  153. ^ Obama (1995), p. 13. For reports on Obama's maternal genealogy, including slave owners, Irish connections, and common ancestors with George W. Bush, Dick Cheney, and Harry Truman, see: Nitkin, David (March 2 2007). "A New Twist to an Intriguing Family History". Baltimore Sun. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help) Jordan, Mary (May 13 2007). "Tiny Irish Village Is Latest Place to Claim Obama as Its Own". Washington Post. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) "Obama's Family Tree Has a Few Surprises". Associated Press. CBS 2 (Chicago). September 8 2007. Retrieved 2007-10-17. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)Template:Wikia genealogy
  154. ^ Kampeas, Ron (August 6 2004). "Obama, Democrats' Rising Star, Known for Harmony with Jews". Jewish News Weekly of Northern California. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  155. ^ "Keeping Hope Alive: Barack Obama Puts Family First". The Oprah Winfrey Show. October 18 2006. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  156. ^ Wallace-Wells, Benjamin (November 2004). "The Great Black Hope: What's Riding on Barack Obama?". Washington Monthly. Retrieved 2007-09-30. See also: Scott, Janny (December 28 2007). "A Member of a New Generation, Obama Walks a Fine Line". International Herald Tribune. Retrieved 2007-12-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  157. ^ McClelland, Edward (February 12 2007). "How Obama Learned to Be a Natural". Salon. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) See also: Wolffe, Richard (July 16 2007). "How Obama Is Shaking Up Campaign". Newsweek. MSNBC. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help) Helman, Scott (October 12 2007). "Early Defeat Launched a Rapid Political Climb". Boston Globe. Retrieved 2007-10-14. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  158. ^ Dickerson, Debra J (January 22 2007). "Colorblind". Salon. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) For a sampling of views by other black commentators see: Younge, Gary (posted October 27 2006 (November 13, 2006 issue)). "Obama: Black Like Me". The Nation. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) Crouch, Stanley (November 2 2006). "What Obama Isn't: Black Like Me". New York Daily News. Archived from the original on 2007-03-08. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) Washington, Laura (January 1 2007). "Whites May Embrace Obama, But Do 'Regular Black Folks'?". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) Page, Clarence (February 25 2007). "Is Barack Black Enough? Now That's a Silly Question". Houston Chronicle. Archived from the original on 2007-03-08. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  159. ^ Ehrenstein, David. "Obama the 'Magic Negro'", Los Angeles Times, March 19 2007. Retrieved on 2007-11-02.
  160. ^ Payne, Les (August 19 2007). "Sen. Barack Obama: In America, a Dual Audience". Newsday. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  161. ^ Robinson, Eugene (March 13 2007). "The Moment for This Messenger?". Washington Post. Retrieved 2008-01-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) See also: Senior, Jennifer (October 2 2006). "Dreaming of Obama". New York Magazine. Retrieved 2008-01-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  162. ^ Obama (2006), p. 10. Sirota wrote that Obama's confirmation of Condoleezza Rice as Secretary of State and his reluctant support of a Senate filibuster opposing President Bush's nomination of Samuel Alito to the U.S. Supreme Court may disappoint "those who see him as a bold challenger of the system". Sirota, David (June 26 2006). "Mr. Obama Goes to Washington". The Nation. Retrieved 2008-01-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)Will, George F (December 14 2006). "Run Now, Obama". Washington Post. Retrieved 2008-01-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  163. ^ Noonan, Peggy (December 15 2006). "The Man From Nowhere". OpinionJournal (Wall Street Journal). Retrieved 2008-01-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) See also: Obama (2006), pp. 122–124. For Noonan's comments on Obama winning the January 2008 Iowa Caucus, see: Noonan, Peggy (January 4 2008). "Out With the Old, In With the New". OpinionJournal (Wall Street Journal). Retrieved 2008-01-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  164. ^ Dorning, Mike (October 4 2007). "Obama Reaches Across Decades to JFK" (paid archive). Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2008-01-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) See also: Harnden, Toby (October 15 2007). "Barack Obama is JFK Heir, Says Kennedy Aide". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2008-01-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  165. ^ Skidelsky, William (October 17, 2005). "Revolutionising the Future: From Tennis to Teleportation". New Statesman. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  166. ^ Bacon Jr., Perry (April 18, 2005). "Barack Obama: The Future of the Democratic Party?". Time. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help) Klein, Joe (May 14 2007). "The TIME 100: Barack Obama". Time. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  167. ^ "Commencement 2005: Knox honors U.S. Senator Barack Obama". Knox College. May 10, 2005. Retrieved 2007-07-22. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  168. ^ "U.S. Sen. Barack Obama to Receive Honorary Degree, Address 2,500 UMass Boston Graduates". University of Massachusetts Boston. May 26, 2006. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  169. ^ "Commencement 2006: Sen. Obama to Address Grads". Northwestern University. June 6, 2006. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  170. ^ "Sen. Obama Addresses Xavier Graduates". Associated Press. USA Today. August 13, 2006. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  171. ^ "SNHU Commencement with Sen. Barack Obama". Southern New Hampshire University. May 19 2007. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  172. ^ "Obama Calls the 'Joshua Generation'". Boston Globe. September 28 2007. Retrieved 2007-09-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)

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Preceded by Senator from Illinois (Class 3)
2005 – present
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