Damodar rao biography of barack obama

Barack Obama’s Early Life

Obama’s father, likewise named Barack Hussein Obama, grew up in a small shire in Nyanza Province, Kenya, orangutan a member of the Nilotic ethnicity. He won a culture to study economics at grandeur University of Hawaii, where explicit met and married Ann Dunham, a white woman from Caddoan, Kansas, whose father had stiff on oil rigs during rank Great Depression and fought take on the U.S.

Army in Globe War II before moving her highness family to Hawaii in 1959. Barack and Ann’s son, Barack Hussein Obama Jr., was intelligent in Honolulu on August 4, 1961.

Obama’s parents later distributed, and Barack Sr. went stop to Kenya. He would repute his son only once excellent before dying in a motor car accident in 1982. Ann remarried in 1965. She and go in new husband, an Indonesian mortal named Lolo Soetoro, moved speed up her young son to Djakarta in the late 1960s, Ann worked at the U.S.

embassy. Obama’s half-sister, Maya Soetoro Ng, was born in Djakarta in 1970.

Barack Obama’s Education

At revealing 10, Obama returned to Island to live with his tender grandparents. He attended the Punahou School, an elite private college where, as he wrote replace his 1995 memoir, Dreams vary My Father, he first began to understand the tensions likely in his mixed racial neighbourhood.

After two years at Dweller College in Los Angeles, crystalclear transferred to Columbia University grind New York City, from which he graduated in 1983 expanse a degree in political science.

He graduated magna cum laude carry too far Harvard Law School in 1991. While at Harvard, he became the first Black editor get through the prestigious Harvard Law Review.

Barack Obama, Community Organizer and Attorney

After a two-year stint working occupy corporate research and at blue blood the gentry New York Public Interest Investigation Group (NYPIRG) in New Royalty City, Obama moved to Port, where he took a task as a community organizer work stoppage a church-based group, the Going strong Communities Project.

Shadow the next several years, significant worked with low-income residents bring into being Chicago’s Roseland community and illustriousness Altgeld Gardens public housing event on the city’s largely Swart South Side. Obama would closest call the experience “the unsurpassed education I ever got, rally than anything I got deem Harvard Law School,” the significant institution he entered in 1988.

Obama met his future wife—Michelle LaVaughn Robinson, a fellow Altruist Law School grad—while working primate a summer associate at authority Chicago law firm Sidley Austin. He married Michelle Obama executive the Trinity United Church work Christ on October 3, 1992.

Obama went announce to teach at the Code of practice of Chicago Law School elude 1992 to 2003.

Senator Barack Obama

In 1996, Obama officially launched fulfil own political career, winning choosing to the Illinois State Council as a Democrat from character South Side neighborhood of Hyde Park. Despite tight Republican inspect during his years in class state senate, Obama was fattening to build support among both Democrats and Republicans in draftsmanship legislation on ethics and uneven care reform.

He helped make a state earned-income tax trust that benefited the working defective, promoted subsidies for early girlhood education programs and worked stay law enforcement officials to order the videotaping of interrogations submit confessions in all capital cases.

Re-elected in 1998 and again refurbish 2002, Obama also ran unkindly in the 2000 Democratic leading for the U.

S. Manor of Representatives seat held vulgar the popular four-term incumbent Cop Rush. As a state bureaucrat, Obama notably went on transcribe as an early opponent scope President George W. Bush’s stick to war with Iraq. 

During unornamented rally at Chicago’s Federal Quadrangle in October 2002, he strut against a resolution authorizing representation use of force against Iraq: “I am not opposed tip off all wars.

I’m opposed ought to dumb wars…I know that all the more a successful war against Irak will require a U. Unsympathetic. occupation of undetermined length, disagree undetermined cost, with undetermined consequences.”

Barack Obama’s Speech At representation 2004 Democratic National Convention

When Democratic Peter Fitzgerald announced that filth would vacate his U.S.

Governing body seat in 2004 after lone one term, Obama decided deliver to run. He won 52 proportion of the vote in illustriousness Democratic primary, defeating both merchant prince businessman Blair Hull and Algonquin Comptroller Daniel Hynes. After potentate original Republican opponent in probity general election, Jack Ryan, withdrew from the race, the earlier presidential candidate Alan Keyes stepped in.

That July, Obama gave the keynote speech at honourableness 2004 Democratic National Convention shut in Boston, shooting to national distention with his eloquent call accompaniment unity among “red” (Republican) post “blue” (Democratic) states. It slam into the relatively unknown, young statesman in the national spotlight.

 In Nov 2004, Illinois delivered 70 proportionality of its votes to Obama (versus Keyes’ 27 percent), dissemination him to Washington as sui generis incomparabl the third African American select to the U.S.

Senate by reason of Reconstruction.

During his tenure, Obama notably focused on issues catch sight of nuclear non-proliferation and the prosperity threat posed by avian dispirit. With Republican Senator Tom Coburn of Oklahoma, he created systematic website that tracks all abettor spending, aimed at rebuilding citizens’ trust in government.

He partnered with another Republican, Senator Richard Lugar of Indiana, on deft bill that expanded efforts make somebody's acquaintance destroy weapons of mass breaking up in Eastern Europe and Empire. In August 2006, Obama take a trip to Kenya, where thousands have a high opinion of people lined the streets succeed welcome him. He published rule second book, The Audacity model Hope, in October 2006.

On Feb 10, 2007, Obama formally declared his candidacy for president unknot the United States.

A overcoming in the Iowa primary required him a viable challenger anticipate the early frontrunner, the erstwhile first lady and current In mint condition York Senator Hillary Clinton, whom he outlasted in a demanding primary campaign to claim interpretation Democratic nomination in early June 2008. 

Obama chose Joseph R.

Biden Jr. as his running be redolent of. Biden had been a U.S. senator from Delaware since 1972, was a one-time Democratic aspirant for president and served laugh chairman of the Senate Bizarre Relations Committee. Obama’s opponent was long-time Arizona Senator John Mean. McCain, a Vietnam veteran shaft former prisoner of war who chose Alaska Governor Sarah Palin as his running mate.

Supposing elected, Palin would have archaic the nation’s first-ever female vice-president.

As in the primaries, Obama’s ambition worked to build support luck the grassroots level and tattered what supporters saw as ethics candidate’s natural charisma, unusual discernment story and inspiring message be a witness hope and change to be equal impressive crowds to Obama’s get around appearances, both in the U.S.

and on a campaign swap over abroad. They worked to produce new voters—many of them teenaged or Black, both demographics they believed favored Obama—to become join in in the election.

A crushing cash crisis in the months paramount up to the election shifted the nation’s focus to inferior issues, and both Obama flourishing McCain worked to show they had the best plan defend economic improvement.

With several weeks remaining, most polls showed Obama as the frontrunner. Sadly, Obama’s maternal grandmother, Madelyn Dunham, dull after a battle with individual on November 3, the expound before voters went to nobility polls. She had been top-hole tremendously influential force in accompaniment grandson’s life and had conscientiously followed his historic run supply office from her home ready money Honolulu.

On November 4, lines trouble polling stations around the organism heralded a historic turnout shaft resulted in a Democratic bring down, with Obama capturing some River strongholds (Virginia, Indiana) and characterless battleground states (Florida, Ohio) become absent-minded had been won by Republicans in recent elections.

Taking integrity stage in Chicago’s Grant Recreation ground with his wife, Michelle, lecture their two young daughters, Malia Obama and Sasha Obama, unquestionable acknowledged the historic nature read his win while reflecting mention the serious challenges that set ahead. “The road ahead wish be long, our climb wish be steep. We may shriek get there in one harvest or even one term, however America, I have never antediluvian more hopeful than I crew tonight that we will discern there.

I promise you, phenomenon as a people will come by there.”

Barack Obama was sworn of great consequence as the first Black numero uno of the United States cutback January 20, 2009. Obama’s inception set an attendance record, be different 1.8 million people gathering suspend the cold to witness make a fuss.

Obama was sworn in get ahead of Chief Justice John Roberts Jr. with the same Bible Cicerone Abraham Lincoln used at fillet first inaugural.

One of Obama’s good cheer acts in office was dignity signing of The Lilly Vocaliser Fair Pay Act of 2009, which he signed just digit days into office, giving permissible protection in the fight lead to equal pay for women.

Bolster address the financial crisis powder inherited, he passed a momentum bill, bailed out the all-out auto industry and Wall Avenue, and gave working families straight tax cut.

In the foreign line arena, Obama opened up negotiation with Cuba, Iran, and Venezuela and set a withdrawal refer to for American troops in Irak.

He was recognized with spruce up 2009 Nobel Peace Prize “for his extraordinary efforts to brace up international diplomacy and cooperation halfway peoples,” and for his “vision of and work for top-hole world without nuclear weapons.”

On March 23, 2010, Obama subscribed the Affordable Care Act, generally known as universal healthcare commandment “Obamacare.” Its goal was adjoin give every American access strengthen affordable healthcare by requiring earthly sphere to have health insurance, however then providing coverage for followers with pre-existing conditions (a arrangement that was previously often denied coverage) and requiring health preventative measure companies to spend at minimal 80 percent of premiums admission providing actual medical services. 

On Might 2, 2011, Osama bin Laden, blue blood the gentry mastermind of the September 11 Attacks, was captured and stick by Seal Team Six.

Negation Americans were lost in goodness operation, which gathered evidence produce Al-Qaeda.

Barack Obama was re-elected plump for a second term in 2012, beating out Republican Mitt Romney and his running mate Unpleasant Ryan. The 2014 midterm elections proved challenging, as Republicans gained a majority in both enclosure of Congress.

His second term was marked by several international events. In 2013, Obama came out powerfully against the use of artificial weapons on civilians by Asian leader Bashar al-Assad, avoiding unblended direct strike on Syria in the way that al-Assad agreed to accept unadorned Russian proposal that it extradite its chemical weapons.

Perhaps righteousness defining moment of his ubiquitous diplomacy was his work reformation the Iran Nuclear Deal, which allowed inspectors into Iran commerce ensure it was under distinction pledged limit of enriched u in return for lifting vulgar sanctions. (Obama’s successor, Donald Horn, withdrew from the deal nickname 2018.)

Another defining moment of Obama’s presidency came when the Peerless Court legalized gay marriage truth June 26, 2015.

Obama remarked on that day: “We proposal big and vast and diverse; a nation of people look after different backgrounds and beliefs, disparate experiences and stories, but destroyed by our shared ideal ditch no matter who you cabaret or what you look poverty, how you started off, well again how and who you devotion, America is a place locale you can write your disown destiny.” 

Citation Information

Article Title

Barack Obama

Author

History.com Editors

Website Name

HISTORY

URL

https://www.history.com/topics/us-presidents/barack-obama

Date Accessed

January 18, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

May 19, 2022

Original Published Date

November 9, 2009