President-Elect Obama names his Power-Dream Team before Inauguration on 20th January 2009 (New Cabinet on Capitol Hill)

Rahm Emanuel
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Rahm Israel Emanuel



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White House Chief of Staff-designate
Taking office
January 20, 2009
President Barack Obama
Succeeding Josh Bolten

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Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Illinois's 5th district
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 3, 2003
Preceded by Rod Blagojevich

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Democratic Caucus Chairman of the United States House of Representatives
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 4, 2007
Leader Steny Hoyer
Preceded by Jim Clyburn

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Born November 29, 1959 (1959-11-29) (age 48)
Chicago, Illinois
Political party Democratic
Spouse Amy Rule
Children Zachariah Emanuel
Ilana Emanuel
Leah Emanuel
Residence Chicago, Illinois
Alma mater Sarah Lawrence College, Northwestern University
Religion Jewish
Rahm Israel Emanuel (born November 29, 1959) is an American politician who has been a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives since 2003, representing Illinois's 5th congressional district, which covers much of the north side of Chicago and parts of suburban Cook County. Emanuel was chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee for the 2006 elections. After the Democratic Party regained control of the House, he was elected as the next chairman of the Democratic Caucus. He is the fourth-ranking Democrat in the House, behind Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Leader Steny Hoyer and Whip Jim Clyburn.[1]

On November 6, 2008, Emanuel accepted an offer from President-elect Barack Obama to become the White House Chief of Staff in Obama's administration, which begins on January 20, 2009.[2][3][4][5]

Emanuel is an influential member of the New Democrat Coalition, and a prominent proponent of economic liberalization. He is noted for his combative style and his political fundraising abilities.[6]

Contents [hide]
1 Early and personal life
2 Career as political staffer
3 Career in finance
4 Congressional career
4.1 Election in 2002
4.2 DCCC chairman
4.3 2008 Contributions
4.4 House leadership
4.5 Committee assignments
4.6 Political views
4.7 Electoral history
5 White House Chief of Staff
6 Works
7 References
8 Further reading
9 External links



[edit] Early and personal life
Rahm Israel Emanuel (Hebrew: רם ישראל עמנואל‎) was born in Chicago, Illinois.[7] His first name, Rahm, means "high" or "lofty" in Hebrew,[8] while his last name, Emanuel, means "God is with us." According to his father, his son is the namesake of Rahamim, a Lehi paramilitary group combatant who was killed.[9] Rahm’s surname was adopted by his family in 1933, after Rahm’s paternal uncle, Emanuel Auerbach, was killed in a skirmish with Arabs in Jerusalem.[10]

Emanuel's father, Benjamin M. Emanuel, is a pediatrician who was born in Jerusalem and was a member of the Irgun, a Jewish militia which operated from 1931 to 1948 during the British Mandate of Palestine. His mother, Martha Smulevitz, worked as an X-ray technician and was the daughter of a local union organizer.[6] She became a civil rights activist; she was also once the owner of a Chicago-area rock and roll club.[10] The two met in Chicago in the 1950s.[11] Emanuel's older brother, Ezekiel, is an oncologist and bioethicist, and his brother Ari is a talent agent in Los Angeles who inspired Jeremy Piven's character Ari Gold on the HBO series Entourage.[6] Emanuel himself is the inspiration for the character Josh Lyman on The West Wing[12]. Emanuel is a first cousin of Howard Stern Show writer Benjy Bronk. [6] Emanuel also has a younger adopted sister named Shoshanna, 14 years his junior.[6][10]

When his family lived in Chicago, he attended Bernard Zell Anshe Emet Day School, a Jewish day school. After his family moved to Wilmette, he attended public school: Romona School, Wilmette Junior High School, and New Trier West High School.[11][13] He and his brothers attended summer camp in Israel.[10] At some point during his high school years, while working at an Arby's restaurant, Emanuel severely cut his right middle finger. He sought medical attention only after suffering severe infection as a result of the wound, resulting in the partial amputation of the finger. [14]. The story of this event has changed over time - it was once rumored that he lost it in combat for the Israeli army, when it was blown off by a Syrian tank.[15]

He graduated from Sarah Lawrence College in 1981, and went on to receive a master's degree in Speech and Communication from Northwestern University in 1985. While still an undergraduate, he joined the congressional campaign of David Robinson of Chicago.[16]

Emanuel was a civilian volunteer in the Israel Defense Forces during the 1991 Persian Gulf War, repairing truck brakes in one of Israel's northern bases.[17][18]

Emanuel's wife, Amy Rule, converted to Judaism shortly before her wedding.[17] They are members of Anshe Sholom B'nai Israel, a Modern Orthodox congregation in Chicago.[19] They have three children, son Zachariah and daughters Ilana and Leah.

Emanuel is a close friend of fellow Chicagoan David Axelrod, Chief Strategist for the 2008 Barack Obama presidential campaign. Axelrod signed the ketuba, a Jewish marriage contract, at Emanuel's wedding, an honor that goes to a family friend or distant relative.[20]

Rabbi Asher Lopatin of Anshe Sholom B'nai Israel Congregation is quoted as saying: "It's a very involved Jewish family"; "Amy was one of the teachers for a class for children during the High Holidays two years ago."[19] Emanuel has said of his Judaism: "I am proud of my heritage and treasure the values it has taught me."[19] Emanuel's family lives on the North Side of Chicago, in the North Center neighborhood.[8]

Emanuel trains for and participates in triathlons.[13]


[edit] Career as political staffer
Clinton's most serious primary rival, Paul Tsongas (the New Hampshire Democratic primary winner in 1992), later withdrew, citing a lack of campaign funds. Richard Mintz, a Washington public relations consultant who worked with Emanuel on the campaign, spoke about the soundness of the idea: "It was that [extra] million dollars that really allowed the campaign to withstand the storm we had to ride out in New Hampshire [over Clinton's relationship with Gennifer Flowers and the controversy over his draft status during the Vietnam War ]."[19] Emanuel's knowledge of the top donors in the country, and his rapport with potential donors within the Jewish community helped Clinton amass a then-unheard-of sum of $72 million.[19]

Following the campaign, Emanuel became a senior advisor to Clinton at the White House from 1993 to 1998. In the White House, Emanuel was initially Assistant to the President for Political Affairs and then Senior Advisor to the President for Policy and Strategy. He was a leading strategist in the unsuccessful White House efforts to institute universal healthcare and many other Clinton initiatives.[21]

One of his proudest moments during the Clinton administration "was an event that touched his political sensibilities and his personal ties to Israel: the 1993 Rose Garden signing ceremony after the Oslo Accords between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization ("PLO"). Emanuel directed the details of the ceremony, down to the choreography of the famous handshake between Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and PLO leader Yasser Arafat."[19]

Emanuel is said to have "mailed a rotten fish to a former coworker after the two parted ways."[19] On the night after the 1996 election, "Emanuel was so angry at the president's enemies that he stood up at a celebratory dinner with colleagues from the campaign, grabbed a steak knife and began rattling off a list of betrayers, shouting 'Dead! ... Dead! ... Dead!' and plunging the knife into the table after every name."[6] His "take-no-prisoners attitude" earned him the nickname "Rahm-bo".[19] People who worked with Emanuel at that time "insist the once hard-charging staffer has mellowed out."[19]


[edit] Career in finance
After serving as an advisor to Bill Clinton, in 1998 Emanuel left the White House to become an investment banker at Wasserstein Perella, (now Dresdner Kleinwort), where he worked until 2002.[22] In 1999, he became a managing director at the firm’s Chicago office. Emanuel made $16.2 million in his two-and-a-half-year stint as a banker, according to Congressional disclosures.[22][23] At Wasserstein Perella, he worked on eight deals, including the acquisition by Commonwealth Edison of Peco Energy and the purchase by GTCR Golder Rauner of the SecurityLink home security unit from SBC Communications.[22]

Emanuel was named to the Board of Directors for the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation ("Freddie Mac") by then President Bill Clinton in 2000. His position paid him $31,060 in 2000 and $231,655 in 2001.[24] During the time Emanuel spent on the board, Freddie Mac was plagued with scandals involving campaign contributions and accounting irregularities.[25] The Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight (OFHEO) later accused the board of having "failed in its duty to follow up on matters brought to its attention." Emanuel resigned from the board in 2001 when he ran for congress.[26]


[edit] Congressional career

[edit] Election in 2002

Rep. John Dingell and Rep. Emanuel sharing pączkiAfter working in investment banking, in 2002 Emanuel pursued the U.S. House seat in the 5th District of Illinois previously held by Rod Blagojevich, who chose not to run for re-election, but instead successfully ran for Governor of Illinois.[citation needed]

His strongest opponent of the seven other candidates in the 2002 Democratic primary — the real contest in this heavily Democratic district — was former Illinois State Representative Nancy Kaszak, who had unsuccessfully opposed Blagojevich in the 1996 primary. The most controversial moment of the primary election came when Edward Moskal, president of the Polish American Congress, a political action committee endorsing Kaszak, called Emanuel a "millionaire carpetbagger who knows nothing" about "our heritage". Moskal also charged that Emanuel had dual citizenship with Israel and had served in the Israeli Army.[27] Rahm was a civilian volunteer in the Israel Defense Forces during the 1991 Gulf War and was born an Israeli citizen due to his father's (dual) Israeli-U.S. citizenship, but relinquished his Israeli citizenship when he turned 18.[17][18][not in citation given]

Emanuel brought together a coalition of Chicago clergy to denounce the incident. He recalled, "One of the proudest moments of my life was seeing people of my district from all backgrounds demonstrate our common values by coming together in response to this obvious attempt to divide them."[19] Moskal's comments were denounced as anti-Semitic by many, including Kaszak.[27] Emanuel won the primary and easily defeated Republican candidate Mark Augusti in the general election. Emanuel supported the October 2002 joint Congressional resolution authorizing the Iraq War, differentiating himself from all nine other Democratic members of the Illinois Congressional delegation (Sen. Richard Durbin, Reps. Bobby Rush, Jesse Jackson, Jr., Bill Lipinski, Luis Gutiérrez, Danny K. Davis, Jan Schakowsky, Jerry Costello and Lane Evans) elected in 2002.[28] In his first term, Rahm Emanuel was a founding member and the Co-Chair of the Congressional Serbian Caucus.[29]

In 2006 Chicago Tribune columnist John Kass reported he had a newsroom confrontation with Emanuel over Kass’s continued speculation Emanuel only won his 2002 election because convicted former Chicago water department boss Don Tomczak sent in his employees to work for Emanuel. He also speculated that Mayor Richard Daley’s “underlings” who were sentenced to federal prison for organizing “patronage armies” also helped Emanuel.[25]


[edit] DCCC chairman
Emanuel was known to have had disagreements over Democratic election strategy with Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean. Dean favored a "50 state strategy", building support for the Democratic Party over the long term, while Emanuel believed a more tactical approach, focusing attention on key districts, was necessary to ensure victory.[30]

Ultimately the Democratic Party enjoyed considerable success in the 2006 elections, gaining 30 seats in the House. Emanuel has received considerable praise for his stewardship of the DCCC during this election cycle, even from Illinois Republican Rep. Ray LaHood who said "He legitimately can be called the golden boy of the Democratic Party today. He recruited the right candidates, found the money and funded them, and provided issues for them. Rahm did what no one else could do in seven cycles."[31]

Emanuel still is close to Bill Clinton, and talked strategy with him at least once a month as chairman of the DCCC.[13] He declared in April 2006 that he would support Hillary Rodham Clinton should she pursue the presidency in 2008. However, Emanuel's loyalties came into conflict when his home-state senator Barack Obama expressed interest in the race; asked in January 2007 about his stance on the Democratic presidential nomination, he said: "I'm hiding under the desk. I'm very far under the desk, and I'm bringing my paper and my phone."[32]


[edit] 2008 Contributions
Open Secrets reports that Rahm Emanuel "was the top House recipient in the 2008 election cycle of contributions from hedge funds, private equity firms and the larger securities/investment industry".[33]


[edit] House leadership
After his role in helping the Democrats to win the 2006 elections, Emanuel was believed to be a leading candidate for the position of Majority Whip. Nancy Pelosi, who became the next Speaker of the House, persuaded him not to challenge Jim Clyburn, but instead to succeed Clyburn in the role of Democratic Caucus Chairman. In return, Pelosi agreed to assign the caucus chair more responsibilities, including "aspects of strategy and messaging, incumbent retention, policy development and rapid-response communications". Caucus vice-chair John Larson remained in this role instead of running for the chairman position.[34]

After U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney asserted that he did not fall within the bounds of orders set for the executive branch, Emanuel called for cutting off the $4.8 million the Executive Branch provides for the Vice President's office. [35]


[edit] Committee assignments
Committee on Ways and Means
Subcommittee on Health
Subcommittee on Select Revenue Measures

[edit] Political views
During his original 2002 campaign, Emanuel "indicated his support of President Bush's position on Iraq, but said he believed the president needed to better articulate his position to the American people".[19] One of the major goals he spoke of during the race was "to help make health care affordable and available for all Americans".[19]

Emanuel has maintained a 100 percent pro-choice voting record and is generally liberal on social issues[citation needed]. He has aligned himself with the centrist wing of the Democratic Party, the Democratic Leadership Council.[citation needed]

According to The Nation, Emanuel is "seen as a strong Israel partisan.”[36] In June 2007, Emanuel condemned an outbreak of Palestinian violence in the Gaza Strip and criticized Arab countries for not applying the same kind of pressure on the Palestinians as they have on Israel. At a 2003 pro-Israel rally in Chicago, Emanuel told the marchers Israel was ready for peace but would not get there until Palestinians "turn away from the path of terror".[37]

In his book, Emanuel advocated a three-month compulsory universal service program for Americans between the ages of 18 and 25. [38]

Emanuel is an ally of Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich and Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley.[39] He called Illinois state legislator John C. D'Amico in 2008 in support of Blagojevich's Illinois capital bill, but withdrew his encouragement when he discovered Daley opposed the bill.[39]


[edit] Electoral history
U.S. House, 5th District of Illinois (General Election)
Year Winning candidate Party Pct Opponent Party Pct Opponent Party Pct
2002 Rahm Emanuel Democratic 67% Mark Augusti Republican 29% Frank Gonzalez Libertarian 4%
2004 Rahm Emanuel (inc.) Democratic 76% Bruce Best Republican 24%
2006 Rahm Emanuel (inc.) Democratic 78% Kevin White Republican 22%
2008 Rahm Emanuel (inc.) Democratic 74% Tom Hanson Republican 22%


[edit] White House Chief of Staff
On November 6, 2008, Emanuel accepted the position of White House Chief of Staff for Barack Obama. Republican House Minority Leader John Boehner of Ohio criticized Emanuel's fierce partisanship stating: "This is an ironic choice for a president-elect who has promised to change Washington, make politics more civil and govern from the center."[5][40] Republican National Committee spokesman Alex Conant issued a statement saying "Barack Obama's first decision as president-elect undermines his promise to 'heal the divides'." However, Senator Lindsay Graham, Republican of South Carolina disagreed, saying: "This is a wise choice by President-elect Obama. He's tough but fair -- honest, direct and candid."[41] Ira Forman, executive director of the National Jewish Democratic Council, said "It's just another indication that despite the attempts to imply that Obama would somehow appoint the wrong person or listen to the wrong people when it comes to the U.S.-Israel relationship ... that was never true."[37] Jeffrey Goldberg of The Atlantic opined that Rahm would be good for the Israeli-Palestinian peace process because if Israeli leaders make excuses to President Obama for not dismantling settlements, "Rahm will call out such nonsense, and it will be very hard for right-wing Israelis to come back and accuse him of being a self-hating Jew."[42]

Many Arabs and Palestinians were angry over Obama’s appointment of Emanuel, especially after his father Benjamin Emanuel was interviewed by the Hebrew daily Maariv in an article entitled “Our Man in the White House.” He stated: "Obviously, he will influence the President to be pro-Israel. Why shouldn't he do it? What is he, an Arab? He's not going to clean the floor of the White House."[43][44][45] Palestinian American Ali Abunimah of Electronic Intifada speaking on Democracy Now! said Obama’s appointment of Emanuel sent the signal he would not be taking “more balanced, more objective, more realistic advice that could change the course from the disastrous Palestine-Israel policies of the Bush and Clinton administrations.”[46] John V. Whitbeck, an international lawyer who has advised Palestinian negotiators in talks with Israel, wrote that Obama’s appointment of Emanuel sends a “contemptuous message" to Muslims who have a “profound loathing and hatred” of the United States because of America's "unconditional support for injustices inflicted and still being inflicted on Palestinians."[47]


[edit] Works
Rahm Emanuel and Bruce Reed, The Plan: Big Ideas for America, PublicAffairs Books of Perseus Books Group, August 2006, ISBN 1586484125. Information from publisher.

[edit] References
^ Baker, Peter and Zeleny, Jeff. "For Obama, No Time to Bask in Victory As He Starts to Build a Transition Team", New York Times. Retrieved on November 6, 2008.
^ "Clinton crony Rahm Emanuel chief of staff; Chicago pal gets top job", Associated Press, Boston Herald (November 5, 2008). Retrieved on November 6, 2008.
^ "Obama Building His Team", Star Tribune (November 5, 2008). Retrieved on November 6, 2008.
^ Bohan, Caren (November 5, 2008). "Obama asks Rep. Emanuel to lead White House staff", Reuters.
^ a b O'Connor, Patrick and Mike Allen (November 6, 2008). "Exclusive: Emanuel accepts White House job", politico.com.
^ a b c d e f Green, Joshua (October 20, 2005). "The Enforcer". Rolling Stone, http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/story/8091986/the_enforcer/.
^ "Emanuel, Rham". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. United States Congress.
^ a b Kuttler, Hillel (July 1, 1997). "original The view from the top", Jerusalem Post.
^ Pfeffer, Anshel and Shlomo Shamir (November 6, 2006). "Obama's first pick: Israeli Rahm Emanuel as chief of staff", Haaretz. Retrieved on November 6, 2008.
^ a b c d Bumiller, Elisabeth (June 15, 1997). "The Brothers Emanuel", New York Times. Retrieved on November 6, 2008.
^ a b Hendrix, Steve (October 22, 2006). "Fighting for The Spoils", The Washington Post.
^ "Economic rescue plan main priority as new chief of staff named", The Guardian (November 7, 2008). Retrieved on November 7, 2008. "Like the president-elect, Emanuel is a Chicago native with a strong connection to the city's political elite. Both have inspired characters on the television series The West Wing, with Emanuel providing the model for wunderkind aide Josh Lyman."
^ a b c Easton, Nina (October 2, 2006). "Rahm Emanuel: Rejuvenating the hopes of House Democrats". Fortune Magazine, http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/2006/10/02/8387515/index.htm. Retrieved on 6 November 2008.
^ Stephey, M.J. and Kate Pickertjournal=Time Magazine; Stephey, M.J.; Pickert, Kate (November 6, 2008). Rahm Emanuel, http://www.time.com/time/politics/article/0,8599,1856965,00.html. Retrieved on 7 November 2008.
^ name=The Enforcer Rolling StoneJoshua Green journal=Rolling Stone. The Enforcer, http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/story/8091986/the_enforcer/2. Retrieved on 20 October 2005.
^ "Rahm Emanuel, Obama’s pick for Chief of Staff, is tough, direct and wedded to his Jewish roots". Jewish Journal. Retrieved on November 6, 2008.
^ a b c Azoulay, Orly (November 2, 2008). "Obama's Israeli adviser: Next White House chief of staff?", Ynet.
^ a b Simon, Roger (February 3, 1997). "The man who would be George: Rahm Emanuel, centrist of the universe". The New Republic 216 (5): 17, http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-19054588.html.
^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Kintisch, Eli. "Newest Jewish U.S. Representative Makes Instant Impact", JTA. Retrieved on June 2, 2007.
^ [Come, O Come, Emanuel, Newsweek, April 14, 2008.
^ "Profile:Rahm Emanuel — Former ballet dancer turned political fixer", The Guardian (November 10, 2006), p. 18. Retrieved on November 11, 2006.
^ a b c Cyrus Sanati and Andrew Ross Sorkin (2008-11-07). "Rahm Emanuel, Former Investment Banker", New York Times. Retrieved on 8 November 2008.
^ Easton, Nina (September 25, 2006). "Rahm Emanuel, Pitbull politician". Fortune, http://money.cnn.com/2006/09/17/magazines/fortune/politics.fortune/index.htm.
^ Jeff Poor (November 6, 2008). "Obama's Chief of Staff Pick a Freddie Mac Alum". Business & Media Institute. Retrieved on November 8, 2008.
^ a b Sweet, Lynn (January 3, 2002). "Too much money a bad thing? 5th District House candidate Rahm Emanuel tested voter reaction to $6 million salary", The Chicago Sun Times.
^ Ross, Brian and Rhonda Schwartz (November 7, 2008). "Emanuel Was Director Of Freddie Mac During Scandal", ABC News. Retrieved on November 7, 2008.
^ a b Wilgoren, Jodi (March 6, 2002). "Ethnic Comments Rattle Race for Congress", New York Times.
^ Long, Karen (October 30, 2002). "Issues important in 5th District" (paid archive), Franklin Park Herald-Journal, p. 5.
^ U.S. House of Representatives (September 28, 2004). "Emanuel to Co-Chair Congressional Serbian Caucus]". Press release.
^ Allen, Mike and Perry Bacon Jr. (June 4, 2006). "Whose Party Is It Anyway?". Time, http://www.time.com/time/magazine/printout/0,8816,1200740,00.html.
^ Haygood, Wil (November 9, 2006). "Democratic 'Golden Boy' Rahm Emanuel, Basking In the Glow of Victory", Washington Post, p. C05. Retrieved on January 3, 2007.
^ Dorning, Mike (January 19, 2007). "Rahm Emanuel's Great Loyalty Test", Chicago Tribune. Retrieved on January 21, 2007.
^ Mayer, Lindsay Renick (November 5, 2008). "Obama's Pick for Chief of Staff Tops Recipients of Wall Street Money", Open Secrets. Retrieved on November 6, 2008.
^ Babington, Charles and Jonathan Weisman (November 10, 2006). "Reid, Pelosi Expected to Keep Tight Rein in Both Chambers", Washington Post, p. A12.
^ Allen, Mike (June 27, 2007). "Dems force Cheney to flip-flop on secret doc", Politico.com.
^ Robert Dreyfuss, Obama's National Security Team Emerging, The Nation, November 6, 2008
^ a b Ninan, Reena and Judson Berger. "With Emanuel, Obama Could Be Sending Signal to Israel", Fox News. Retrieved on November 6, 2008.
^ http://www.examiner.com/x-536-Civil-Liberties-Examiner~y2008m11d6-Obamas-chief-of-staff-choice-favors-compulsory-universal-service
^ a b Miller, Rich (2008-08-08). "Once again, Blagojevich proves why he can't be trusted", Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved on 9 November 2008.
^ Anderson, Scott J (November 6, 2008). "Emanuel expected to bring 'tough-minded' approach to White House", CNN. Retrieved on November 6, 2008.
^ Margaret Talev and Steven Thomma, /879220.html Obama names chief of staff, plans news conference as transition pace picks up, McClatchy Newspapers, November 7, 2008.
^ Jeffrey Goldberg, Rahm Emanuel and Israel, The Atlantic, November 6, 2008.
^ Matthew Kalman, Obama chief of staff Rahm Emanuel is no pal of ours, Israel's foes say, New York Daily News, November 6, 2008.
^ Robert Fisk, Obama has to pay for eight years of Bush's delusions, The Independent, November 8, 2008.
^ Mideast press awaits Obama's axis of upheaval, Agence France-Presse, November 6, 2008.
^ President-Elect Obama and the Future of US Foreign Policy: A Roundtable Discussion, Democracy Now, November 06, 2008.
^ John V. Whitbeck, The Promised Land? Obama, Emanuel and Israel, Counterpunch, November 7 / 9, 2008.

[edit] Further reading
Biography
Bendavid, Naftali The Thumpin': How Rahm Emanuel and the Democrats Learned to Be Ruthless and Ended the Republican Revolution, Doubleday (May 8, 2007), ISBN 978-0385523288
Articles
Hendrix, Steve Fighting for The Spoils The Washington Post, October 22, 2006
Profile: Rahm Emanuel The Guardian, November 10, 2006
Bendavid, Naftali The House that Rahm Built Chicago Tribune, November 12, 2006
Democratic Caucus Chair Rahm Emanuel NPR Fresh Air from WHYY, January 11, 2007, 20-minute interview
Profile: Rahm Emanuel from BBC News

[edit] External links
U. S. Congressman Rahm Emanuel official House site
Friends of Rahm Emanuel official campaign site
Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
Voting record maintained by The Washington Post
Campaign finance reports and data at the Federal Election Commission
Campaign contributions at OpenSecrets.org
Biography, voting record, and interest group ratings at Project Vote Smart
Issue positions and quotes at On The Issues
Current Bills Sponsored at StateSurge.com
Profile at SourceWatch Congresspedia
Collected news and commentary at The New York Times
Rahm Emanuel at the Open Directory Project
A discussion about healthcare with Ezekiel, Ari, and Rahm Emanuel An interview with Rahm Emanuel and his brothers from the Charlie Rose website
Political offices
Preceded by
Joshua Bolten White House Chief of Staff
(Designate)
Served Under: Barack Obama
January 20, 2009 Incumbent
United States House of Representatives
Preceded by
Rod R. Blagojevich Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Illinois's 5th congressional district
2003–Present Succeeded by
Incumbent
Party political offices
Preceded by
Robert Matsui
California
Chairman of Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee
2005–2007 Succeeded by
Chris Van Hollen
Maryland

Preceded by
Jim Clyburn
South Carolina
Chairman of House Democratic Caucus
2007–Present Succeeded by
Incumbent
[show]v • d • eIllinois's current delegation to the United States Congress

Senators Dick Durbin (D), Barack Obama (D)

Representative(s) Bobby Rush (D), Jesse Jackson, Jr. (D), Dan Lipinski (D), Luis Gutiérrez (D), Rahm Emanuel (D), Peter Roskam (R), Danny Davis (D), Melissa Bean (D), Jan Schakowsky (D), Mark Kirk (R), Jerry Weller (R), Jerry Costello (D), Judy Biggert (R), Bill Foster (D), Tim Johnson (R), Donald Manzullo (R), Phil Hare (D), Ray LaHood (R), John Shimkus (R)

State delegations Alabama • Alaska • Arizona • Arkansas • California • Colorado • Connecticut • Delaware • Florida • Georgia • Hawaii • Idaho • Illinois • Indiana • Iowa • Kansas • Kentucky • Louisiana • Maine • Maryland • Massachusetts • Michigan • Minnesota • Mississippi • Missouri • Montana • Nebraska • Nevada • New Hampshire • New Jersey • New Mexico • New York • North Carolina • North Dakota • Ohio • Oklahoma • Oregon • Pennsylvania • Rhode Island • South Carolina • South Dakota • Tennessee • Texas • Utah • Vermont • Virginia • Washington • West Virginia • Wisconsin • Wyoming

Non-voting delegations American Samoa • District of Columbia • Guam • Puerto Rico • U.S. Virgin Islands

[show]v • d • eCurrent leadership of the United States House of Representatives

Presiding officer Nancy Pelosi (D-Speaker)

Majority (Democratic) Minority (Republican)

Steny Hoyer (Leader)
Jim Clyburn (Whip)
John Lewis (Senior Chief Deputy Majority Whip)
Debbie Wasserman Schultz, G. K. Butterfield, Joseph Crowley, Diana DeGette, Ed Pastor, Jan Schakowsky, John S. Tanner, Maxine Waters (Chief Deputy Whips)
Rahm Emanuel (Caucus Chairman)
John Larson (Caucus Vice-Chairman)
Chris Van Hollen (Campaign Committee Chairman)
Rosa DeLauro, George Miller (Steering/Policy Committee Co-Chairs)
John Boehner (Leader)
Roy Blunt (Whip)
Eric Cantor (Chief Deputy Whip)
Adam Putnam (Conference Chair)
Thad McCotter (Policy Committee Chairman)
Kay Granger (Conference Vice-Chair)
John Carter (Conference Secretary)
Tom Cole (Campaign Committee Chairman)





[show]v • d • eWhite House Chiefs of Staff

Steelman • Adams • Persons • M Watson • Haldeman • Haig • Rumsfeld • Cheney • Jordan • J Watson • J Baker • Regan • H Baker • Duberstein • Sununu • Skinner • J Baker • McLarty • Panetta • Bowles • Podesta • Card • Bolten • Emanuel (designate)

[show]v • d • eCabinet of President-elect Barack Obama (from 2009 onwards)

Tuesday, November 4th, 2008, Chicago, Illinois: Text of President-elect Barack Obama's victory speech in Chicago

Text of Obama's victory speech
Wednesday, 05 November 2008 01:25pm
Tuesday, November 4th, 2008, Chicago, Illinois: Text of President-elect Barack Obama's victory speech in Chicago on Tuesday, as released by his campaign:

If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible; who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time; who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer.

It's the answer told by lines that stretched around schools and churches in numbers this nation has never seen; by people who waited three hours and four hours, many for the very first time in their lives, because they believed that this time must be different; that their voice could be that difference.

It's the answer spoken by young and old, rich and poor, Democrat and Republican, black, white, Latino, Asian, Native American, gay, straight, disabled and not disabled - Americans who sent a message to the world that we have never been a collection of Red States and Blue States: we are, and always will be, the United States of America.

It's the answer that led those who have been told for so long by so many to be cynical, and fearful, and doubtful of what we can achieve to put their hands on the arc of history and bend it once more toward the hope of a better day.

It's been a long time coming, but tonight, because of what we did on this day, in this election, at this defining moment, change has come to America.

I just received a very gracious call from Senator McCain. He fought long and hard in this campaign, and he's fought even longer and harder for the country he loves. He has endured sacrifices for America that most of us cannot begin to imagine, and we are better off for the service rendered by this brave and selfless leader. I congratulate him and Governor Palin for all they have achieved, and I look forward to working with them to renew this nation's promise in the months ahead.

I want to thank my partner in this journey, a man who campaigned from his heart and spoke for the men and women he grew up with on the streets of Scranton and rode with on that train home to Delaware, the Vice President-elect of the United States, Joe Biden.

I would not be standing here tonight without the unyielding support of my best friend for the last sixteen years, the rock of our family and the love of my life, our nation's next First Lady, Michelle Obama. Sasha and Malia, I love you both so much, and you have earned the new puppy that's coming with us to the White House. And while she's no longer with us, I know my grandmother is watching, along with the family that made me who I am. I miss them tonight, and know that my debt to them is beyond measure.

To my campaign manager David Plouffe, my chief strategist David Axelrod, and the best campaign team ever assembled in the history of politics - you made this happen, and I am forever grateful for what you've sacrificed to get it done.

But above all, I will never forget who this victory truly belongs to - it belongs to you.

I was never the likeliest candidate for this office. We didn't start with much money or many endorsements. Our campaign was not hatched in the halls of Washington - it began in the backyards of Des Moines and the living rooms of Concord and the front porches of Charleston.



It was built by working men and women who dug into what little savings they had to give five dollars and ten dollars and twenty dollars to this cause. It grew strength from the young people who rejected the myth of their generation's apathy; who left their homes and their families for jobs that offered little pay and less sleep; from the not-so-young people who braved the bitter cold and scorching heat to knock on the doors of perfect strangers; from the millions of Americans who volunteered, and organized, and proved that more than two centuries later, a government of the people, by the people and for the people has not perished from this Earth. This is your victory.

I know you didn't do this just to win an election and I know you didn't do it for me. You did it because you understand the enormity of the task that lies ahead. For even as we celebrate tonight, we know the challenges that tomorrow will bring are the greatest of our lifetime - two wars, a planet in peril, the worst financial crisis in a century. Even as we stand here tonight, we know there are brave Americans waking up in the deserts of Iraq and the mountains of Afghanistan to risk their lives for us. There are mothers and fathers who will lie awake after their children fall asleep and wonder how they'll make the mortgage, or pay their doctor's bills, or save enough for college. There is new energy to harness and new jobs to be created; new schools to build and threats to meet and alliances to repair.

The road ahead will be long. Our climb will be steep. We may not get there in one year or even one term, but America - I have never been more hopeful than I am tonight that we will get there. I promise you - we as a people will get there.

There will be setbacks and false starts. There are many who won't agree with every decision or policy I make as President, and we know that government can't solve every problem. But I will always be honest with you about the challenges we face. I will listen to you, especially when we disagree. And above all, I will ask you join in the work of remaking this nation the only way it's been done in America for two-hundred and twenty-one years - block by block, brick by brick, calloused hand by calloused hand.

What began twenty-one months ago in the depths of winter must not end on this autumn night. This victory alone is not the change we seek - it is only the chance for us to make that change. And that cannot happen if we go back to the way things were. It cannot happen without you.

So let us summon a new spirit of patriotism; of service and responsibility where each of us resolves to pitch in and work harder and look after not only ourselves, but each other. Let us remember that if this financial crisis taught us anything, it's that we cannot have a thriving Wall Street while Main Street suffers - in this country, we rise or fall as one nation; as one people.

Let us resist the temptation to fall back on the same partisanship and pettiness and immaturity that has poisoned our politics for so long. Let us remember that it was a man from this state who first carried the banner of the Republican Party to the White House - a party founded on the values of self-reliance, individual liberty, and national unity. Those are values we all share, and while the Democratic Party has won a great victory tonight, we do so with a measure of humility and determination to heal the divides that have held back our progress. As Lincoln said to a nation far more divided than ours, "We are not enemies, but friends...though passion may have strained it must not break our bonds of affection." And to those Americans whose support I have yet to earn - I may not have won your vote, but I hear your voices, I need your help, and I will be your President too.

And to all those watching tonight from beyond our shores, from parliaments and palaces to those who are huddled around radios in the forgotten corners of our world - our stories are singular, but our destiny is shared, and a new dawn of American leadership is at hand. To those who would tear this world down - we will defeat you. To those who seek peace and security - we support you. And to all those who have wondered if America's beacon still burns as bright - tonight we proved once more that the true strength of our nation comes not from our the might of our arms or the scale of our wealth, but from the enduring power of our ideals: democracy, liberty, opportunity, and unyielding hope.

For that is the true genius of America - that America can change. Our union can be perfected. And what we have already achieved gives us hope for what we can and must achieve tomorrow.

This election had many firsts and many stories that will be told for generations. But one that's on my mind tonight is about a woman who cast her ballot in Atlanta. She's a lot like the millions of others who stood in line to make their voice heard in this election except for one thing - Ann Nixon Cooper is 106 years old.

She was born just a generation past slavery; a time when there were no cars on the road or planes in the sky; when someone like her couldn't vote for two reasons - because she was a woman and because of the color of her skin.

And tonight, I think about all that she's seen throughout her century in America - the heartache and the hope; the struggle and the progress; the times we were told that we can't, and the people who pressed on with that American creed: Yes we can.

At a time when women's voices were silenced and their hopes dismissed, she lived to see them stand up and speak out and reach for the ballot. Yes we can.

When there was despair in the dust bowl and depression across the land, she saw a nation conquer fear itself with a New Deal, new jobs and a new sense of common purpose. Yes we can.

When the bombs fell on our harbor and tyranny threatened the world, she was there to witness a generation rise to greatness and a democracy was saved. Yes we can.

She was there for the buses in Montgomery, the hoses in Birmingham, a bridge in Selma, and a preacher from Atlanta who told a people that "We Shall Overcome." Yes we can.

A man touched down on the moon, a wall came down in Berlin, a world was connected by our own science and imagination. And this year, in this election, she touched her finger to a screen, and cast her vote, because after 106 years in America, through the best of times and the darkest of hours, she knows how America can change. Yes we can.

America, we have come so far. We have seen so much. But there is so much more to do. So tonight, let us ask ourselves - if our children should live to see the next century; if my daughters should be so lucky to live as long as Ann Nixon Cooper, what change will they see? What progress will we have made?

This is our chance to answer that call. This is our moment. This is our time - to put our people back to work and open doors of opportunity for our kids; to restore prosperity and promote the cause of peace; to reclaim the American Dream and reaffirm that fundamental truth - that out of many, we are one; that while we breathe, we hope, and where we are met with cynicism, and doubt, and those who tell us that we can't, we will respond with that timeless creed that sums up the spirit of a people:

Yes We Can. Thank you, God bless you, and may God Bless the United States of America.




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God Blessed America ! Will He Bless Malaysia?
written by Nicole Tan Lee Koon, Wednesday, November 05 2008 01:54 pm

A great day for America. A great day for the minorities. A great day for humanity. Let us, Malaysians work towards that goal. Let us break the racial and religious barriers. God did not create religious or dietary laws to segregate us but to protect us. Let us break out from our misconceived mindsets; bigotry; discrimination; etc in order to achieve a better world. Make Malaysia a proud nation.

Nicole Tan Lee Koon

A TALE OF TWO CITIES?
written by Stephen Tan Ban Cheng, Wednesday, November 05 2008 02:49 pm

A nation can only scale the height of greatness when its collective mind harbours such dreams of greatness. The collective mind cannot be stunted by nightmares of racial supremacy, religious bigotry and discriminatory tendencies.

Barack Obama spoke of "the enduring power of [American] ideals: democracy, liberty, opportunity, and unyielding hope."

Fifty-one years after our Independence, where is our faith, where is our hope and where is our charity?

Indeed, we are beginning to be a tale of two cities: the rich are getting richer while the poor are getting poorer. Where has our dream of being an egalitarian nation gone to?

Stephen Tan Ban Cheng

Martin Luther King is Smiling
written by Sharmini Suloch (by email), Wednesday, November 05 2008 03:18 pm

Today the struggles of a minority have been put right and the very thought that a man of colour will sit in the White House is no longer a Dream, it is a Reality!

This new dawn brings hope to the many minorities in many countries on this earth. I hope my country, Malaysia is watching, I hope my fellow Malaysians have fathomed the enormity of this moment and it is my greatest hope that Malaysia will follow in the footsteps of America.

I know for a fact that Martin Luther King is smiling from heaven, his life was not in vain and his dream of such a day as today has arrived.

My congratulations to Mr Obama for throughout his campaign he remained calm and composed and weathered many a storm with dignity. The best man is President and Americans agree that Obama is the best man. I wish America and the Obama administration every success in the tough times ahead. I am certain his administration will lead the way to a better future for America.

Sharmini Suloch

Truly Inspiring!
written by Syamsuriatina Binti Ishak, Wednesday, November 05 2008 05:38 pm

US President Elect Barack Obama's maiden speech was truly inspiring due to his apparent humility and maturity, despite being criticized for his lack of experience.

Just like in Malaysia's GE08 earlier this year, there was an overwhelming voter turnout, significantly involving many new and first-time voters, who essentially conducted a decision loud and clear in their 'referendum' of the current administration. Obama's win shows us all that a democratic change was and is possible, particularly in the emergingly politically aware electorate.

So, for me, it's a pat on the back for the democratic voice.

Let the Obama administration be aware that now, though the American people and the world at large I'm sure would be willing to be patient and supportive, that every eye shall be looking to him to effect the change he promises.

Syamsuriatina Binti Ishak








Obama becomes first African-American elected President
Wednesday, 05 November 2008 12:12pm
by VOA News

The United States has elected its first African-American president with the victory of Barack Obama in Tuesday's balloting.

The Democratic Party candidate captured well over the 270 electoral votes he needed with projected victories in several West Coast states. Senator Obama has a total of 297 electoral votes to 138 for his Republican opponent, Senator John McCain.

Hundreds of thousands of Obama supporters in his hometown of Chicago broke into screams of joy as soon as U.S. television networks declared him the winner.

McCain's bid for the White House fell short when he lost several hotly-contested states, including Pennsylvania, Florida, Ohio, and Virginia. No Republican had lost Virginia since 1964.

Obama's victory ends eight years of Republican control of the White House under President George Bush.

He becomes the first black president in the United States' 232-year history. He will be sworn in on January 20, 2009.

Obama, not even a national figure just a few short years ago, overtook a host of Democratic presidential hopefuls, including Senator Hillary Clinton, to clinch the Democratic Party's nomination for the 2008 presidential election.

The son of a white American woman and a black Kenyan man, the 47-year-old Obama burst into the national spotlight after delivering the keynote address at the 2004 Democratic National Convention. Four years later, he became the party nominee and the first African-American to win the nomination of a major U.S. political party.

Obama, who was born in Hawaii, spent his youth on the Pacific Island U.S. state, as well as in Indonesia.

Obama attended Columbia University in New York and set his sights on public service after graduation, becoming a community organizer in Chicago. He later attended Harvard Law School and served in the Illinois State Senate.

He won his U.S. Senate seat by a landslide in 2004.

He has campaigned on a message of hope and unity, stressing the need to overcome long-standing political and social divisions. He has also emphasized his call for change after eight years of Republican control of the White House under President George Bush.

Obama's wife Michelle is a fellow Harvard Law School graduate. They have two young girls.


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Congratulations to democracy.
written by Karamjit Singh a/l Harbhajan Singh, Wednesday, November 05 2008 01:14 pm

Well it shows that a good leader does not depend on ones ethnic background. Americans has always been labeled as a ‘racist’ country. Well they have proven us wrong in the instance of choosing a leader.

Perhaps one day ‘other’ Countries can look beyond ethnicity in choosing a leader of their respective Countries and maybe even chairpersons of Private/ Government linked Companies as well as state owned investment arm.

Karamjit Singh a/l Harbhajan Singh

A Bangsa Ketuanan among all its own citizens??????
written by Tan Peek Guat, Wednesday, November 05 2008 01:27 pm

This election result further strengthen my belief on America - that it is a humane country with better equality and more 'rights enjoyed by the citizens' than in other countries which condemn it.

The result is a testimony that the people of America are treated equally; and that they want their best brains to lead their country.

If not for the above, the American who are whites would never have allowed an African to to be president of America.

They would have established a "Ketuanan Bangsa America" to have prevented that; but they had not!

Tan Peek Guat

KEY ASPECT OF OBAMA WIN
written by Stephen Tan Ban Cheng, Wednesday, November 05 2008 02:57 pm

One key aspect of Barack Obama's victory is his ability to also ensure that his Democratic Party win majorities in both the Senate and the House of Congress. Even the contests for state governorships blew the way of the Democrats.

Properly used, such a result may well mean a very strong presidency indeed unless he "badawies" this advantage.

Stephen Tan Ban Cheng







Obama Elected President as Racial Barrier Falls
Damon Winter/The New York Times
Senator Barack Obama with his wife, Michelle, and Senator Joseph R. Biden Jr. with his wife, Jill, in Chicago on Tuesday night.

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By ADAM NAGOURNEY
Published: November 4, 2008
Barack Hussein Obama was elected the 44th president of the United States on Tuesday, sweeping away the last racial barrier in American politics with ease as the country chose him as its first black chief executive.

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The Promise: For Many Abroad, an Ideal Renewed (November 5, 2008)
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The Challenge: For Obama, No Time for Laurels; Now the Hard Part (November 5, 2008)
News Analysis: Now, Promises to Keep, and Divides to Be Bridged (November 5, 2008)

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The election of Mr. Obama amounted to a national catharsis — a repudiation of a historically unpopular Republican president and his economic and foreign policies, and an embrace of Mr. Obama’s call for a change in the direction and the tone of the country.

But it was just as much a strikingly symbolic moment in the evolution of the nation’s fraught racial history, a breakthrough that would have seemed unthinkable just two years ago.

Mr. Obama, 47, a first-term senator from Illinois, defeated Senator John McCain of Arizona, 72, a former prisoner of war who was making his second bid for the presidency.

To the very end, Mr. McCain’s campaign was eclipsed by an opponent who was nothing short of a phenomenon, drawing huge crowds epitomized by the tens of thousands of people who turned out to hear Mr. Obama’s victory speech in Grant Park in Chicago.

Mr. McCain also fought the headwinds of a relentlessly hostile political environment, weighted down with the baggage left to him by President Bush and an economic collapse that took place in the middle of the general election campaign.

“If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible, who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time, who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer,” said Mr. Obama, standing before a huge wooden lectern with a row of American flags at his back, casting his eyes to a crowd that stretched far into the Chicago night.

“It’s been a long time coming,” the president-elect added, “but tonight, because of what we did on this date in this election at this defining moment, change has come to America.”

Mr. McCain delivered his concession speech under clear skies on the lush lawn of the Arizona Biltmore, in Phoenix, where he and his wife had held their wedding reception. The crowd reacted with scattered boos as he offered his congratulations to Mr. Obama and saluted the historical significance of the moment.

“This is a historic election, and I recognize the significance it has for African-Americans and for the special pride that must be theirs tonight,” Mr. McCain said, adding, “We both realize that we have come a long way from the injustices that once stained our nation’s reputation.”

Not only did Mr. Obama capture the presidency, but he led his party to sharp gains in Congress. This puts Democrats in control of the House, the Senate and the White House for the first time since 1995, when Bill Clinton was in office.

The day shimmered with history as voters began lining up before dawn, hours before polls opened, to take part in the culmination of a campaign that over the course of two years commanded an extraordinary amount of attention from the American public.

As the returns became known, and Mr. Obama passed milestone after milestone —Ohio, Florida, Virginia, Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, Iowa and New Mexico — people rolled spontaneously into the streets to celebrate what many described, with perhaps overstated if understandable exhilaration, a new era in a country where just 143 years ago, Mr. Obama, as a black man, could have been owned as a slave.

For Republicans, especially the conservatives who have dominated the party for nearly three decades, the night represented a bitter setback and left them contemplating where they now stand in American politics.

Mr. Obama and his expanded Democratic majority on Capitol Hill now face the task of governing the country through a difficult period: the likelihood of a deep and prolonged recession, and two wars. He took note of those circumstances in a speech that was notable for its sobriety and its absence of the triumphalism that he might understandably have displayed on a night when he won an Electoral College landslide.

“The road ahead will be long, our climb will be steep,” said Mr. Obama, his audience hushed and attentive, with some, including the Rev. Jesse Jackson, wiping tears from their eyes. “We may not get there in one year or even one term, but America, I have never been more hopeful than I am tonight that we will get there. I promise you, we as a people will get there.” The roster of defeated Republicans included some notable party moderates, like Senator John E. Sununu of New Hampshire and Representative Christopher Shays of Connecticut, and signaled that the Republican conference convening early next year in Washington will be not only smaller but more conservative.

Mr. Obama will come into office after an election in which he laid out a number of clear promises: to cut taxes for most Americans, to get the United States out of Iraq in a fast and orderly fashion, and to expand health care.

In a recognition of the difficult transition he faces, given the economic crisis, Mr. Obama is expected to begin filling White House jobs as early as this week.

Mr. Obama defeated Mr. McCain in Ohio, a central battleground in American politics, despite a huge effort that brought Mr. McCain and his running mate, Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska, back there repeatedly. Mr. Obama had lost the state decisively to Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York in the Democratic primary.

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Elisabeth Bumiller contributed reporting from Phoenix, Marjorie Connelly from New York and Jeff Zeleny from Chicago.









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Obama elected nation's 44th president
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Barack Obama celebrates daughters Sasha and Malia and wife Michelle during an election night victory rally at Chicago's Grant Park.



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John McCain stands with his wife Cindy as he delivers his concession speech in Phoenix after Barack Obama won the presidential election.




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Democrat Barack Obama was elected the 44th president of the United States on Tuesday, becoming the first African American to win the post and completing a stunningly rapid rise from state senator to the White House.
A win in California put Obama over the top, giving him 55 electoral votes — enough to surpass the 270 needed to defeat Republican John McCain and claim the presidency. The Illinois senator won key state after key state Tuesday, with victories in the battlegrounds of Ohio, Virginia, Florida and Pennsylvania being harbingers of the outcome.


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By early Wednesday, the AP projected Obama had 349 electoral votes. McCain had 144.

The popular vote was significantly closer than the electoral vote. With 83% of precincts reporting, Obama led McCain nationally, 51.7% to 47.1%.

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"If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible, who still wonders if the dream of the founders is alive in our time, who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer," Obama told thousands of cheering supporters at an enormous rally in Chicago's Grant Park.

"I will never forget who this victory truly belongs to. It belongs to you."

He was gracious to McCain, saying his opponent "fought long and hard in this campaign. He has fought even harder and longer for the country that he loves."

Obama, 47, called for a renewal of the American spirit and spoke directly to McCain supporters.

"I may not have won your vote tonight, but I hear your voices," Obama said. "I need your help and I will be your president, too."

Only four years ago on election night, Obama was a newly minted U.S. senator-elect after serving for eight years in the Illinois legislature. Now he holds the title of president-elect.

"My friends, we have come to the end of a long journey," McCain told his supporters in Phoenix. He congratulated Obama for the victory, saying he admired Obama's ability to unite diverse groups.

"Senator Obama and I have had — and argued — our differences, and he has prevailed," McCain said. He pledged to help Obama "lead us through the many challenges we face."

"I wish godspeed to the man who was my former opponent, and will be my president," McCain said.

President State Results
Select a stateAlabamaAlaskaArizonaArkansasCaliforniaColoradoConnecticutDistrict of ColumbiaDelawareFloridaGeorgiaHawaiiIdahoIllinoisIndianaIowaKansasKentuckyLouisianaMaineMarylandMassachusettsMichiganMinnesotaMississippiMissouriMontanaNebraskaNevadaNew HampshireNew JerseyNew MexicoNew YorkNorth CarolinaNorth DakotaOhioOklahomaOregonPennsylvaniaRhode IslandSouth CarolinaSouth DakotaTennesseeTexasUtahVermontVirginiaWashingtonWest VirginiaWisconsinWyoming National Map

Obama won California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, Wisconsin, Washington state and the District of Columbia. McCain claimed Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Idaho, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, West Virginia and Wyoming.

A handful of states remained in play early Wednesday. Obama had a narrow lead in North Carolina; McCain was ahead in Georgia, Missouri and Montana.

Turnout was high in many parts of the nation. Lines of voters formed at polling places as early as 4 a.m. in some states, and the AP reported that turnout in Ohio — one of the key states in this election — might approach 80% of registered voters

Early surveys of voters, conducted by a consortium of news organizations, indicated 60% listed the economy as their most important issue, with no other issue — including the war on Iraq and terrorism — getting more than 10%.

More than 80% of voters said they were very worried the current economic crisis will harm their family's finances over the next year, but 47% also said they felt the economy will improve in the next year. Two-thirds said they were worried about obtaining health care.

Only 28% of those polled said they approved of President Bush's job performance — an issue Obama hammered on throughout the campaign as he tried to tie McCain to Bush.

Many votes had been cast for days. Though the overall number of early votes was unknown, there were more than 29 million ballots cast in 30 states, suggesting an advantage for Obama.

Obama's victory triggered celebrations in the U.S. and around the world.

In Washington, residents poured into the streets. Hundreds of people gathered on Pennsylvania Avenue in front of the White House, dancing and cheering. At historically black Howard University, students hugged and chanted "Yes, we did."

"We're so happy. We want to be part of history. You cannot let it just pass," said Eskinder Zeluel, an Ethiopia native who joined the celebration outside of the White House. "You can tell your kids you can be anything you want to be in this country."

In New York's Harlem, thousands of people poured into the streets. Near the historic Apollo Theater, men played conga drums and revelers blew noisemakers.

."I never thought tonight was possible," said Robert Lewis Jackson, 43. "Not in my lifetime."

Australians filled a hotel ballroom in Sydney. Brazilians partied in Rio de Janeiro. In the town of Obama in Japan, dancers cheered in delight when their namesake's victory was declared.

Obama's win"shows that America truly is a diverse, multicultural society where the color of your skin really does not matter," said Jason Ge, an international relations student at Peking University in China.

In Germany, where more than 200,000 people flocked to see Obama this summer as he burnished his foreign policy credentials during a trip to the Middle East and Europe, the election dominated television ticker crawls, newspaper headlines and websites.

House, Senate races

The presidency was far from the only office at stake Tuesday. In House and Senate elections, Democrats extended their hold on Congress.

Democrats ousted Republican Sens. Elizabeth Dole of North Carolina and John Sununu of New Hampshire. They also captured seats held by retiring GOP senators in Virginia and New Mexico.

With 25 of 35 Senate races called, Democrats were guaranteed at least a 54-46 majority, including two holdover independents who vote with Democrats. But they were hoping for even greater gains.

North Carolina state Sen. Kay Hagan, little known politically before her run, defeated Dole — a former Cabinet member in two Republican administrations and 2000 presidential hopeful. Dole had tried to tie Hagan, a former Presbyterian Sunday school teacher, to atheists in an ad that appeared to backfire.

In New Hampshire, former Democratic Gov. Jeanne Shaheen defeated Sununu in a rematch of their 2002 contest.

The Democratic goal was to reach a 60-seat, filibuster-proof Senate majority. Leaders in both parties said that was a long shot, but Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., head of the party's senatorial campaign committee, acknowledged that "Democrats are poised to pick up some seats."

His Democratic counterpart, Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., predicted "a whole lot of seats" for Democrats, but he said reaching a 60-vote majority was unlikely.

In the House, Democrats unseated incumbents in Florida and Connecticut and jumped to early leads over Republicans in more than a dozen other contests as they pressed to increase their majority.

Republicans encountered early trouble in Florida, where Rep. Tom Feeney — under fire for ties to disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff — was the first to fall at the hands of former state Rep. Suzanne Kosmas. Rep. Ric Keller of Florida lost to his Democratic challenger, attorney Alan Grayson.

And Republicans surrendered their last House seat in New England when Democrat Jim Himes, a Greenwich businessman, defeated 22-year veteran Rep. Chris Shays in a wealthy southwestern Connecticut district that heavily favored Obama.

If the Democrats increase their majorities, it would be the first time in more than 75 years that the party received larger congressional margins in back-to-back elections.

Governors

With 10 of 11 gubernatorial race results reported, incumbents were the victors.

Indiana, Montana, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Utah, Vermont and West Virginia re-elected sitting governors. Jay Nixon, a Democrat, won a seat in the Missouri's open race that was previously held by a Republican. Jack Markell won Delaware's open race, keeping the position in the hands of Democrats. In North Carolina, Lt. Gov. Beverly Perdue won an open race against Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory.

In Washington state, Democratic Gov. Chris Gregoire and GOP challenger Dino Rossi, a former state senator, restaged their 2004 contest that Gregoire won by 133 votes after two recounts and a lawsuit.

Ballot measures

Voters in California, Florida and Arizona appeared to be favoring constitutional amendments banning gay marriage, although the races were close. All three amendments were leading just an hour after the last poll closed in California.

In Florida, the constitutional amendment needed 60% approval to pass. With 86.3% of precincts reporting, the amendment was winning 62.1% to 37.9%.

In Arizona with 73.7% of precincts reporting, it was leading 56.2% to 43.8%. In California, where both sides raised some $73 million in a markedly divisive campaign, the constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage was leading 54.4% to 45.6% with 8.3% of precincts reporting.

In Arkansas, voters approved a ban on unmarried couples adopting or being foster parents.

Massachusetts voters approved decriminalizing possession of 1 ounce or less of marijuana. Under the new law, taking effect in 30 days, those caught must give up the marijuana and pay a $100 fine but won't face criminal penalties. Eleven other states have similar laws.

Michigan became the 13th state to allow residents — with a doctor's approval — to use marijuana to treat pain caused by cancer and other diseases.

Gambling, which gives states revenue without directly increasing taxes, was on the ballot in eight states. Maryland voters approved a measure that legalizes slot machines, dedicating half the revenue from up to 15,000 machines to public schools. Ohioans approved a state lottery to fund college scholarships.

Ohio voters, however, also rejected a measure approving a new casino. And in Massachusetts, citizens approved a ban on commercial dog racing.

Despite a weak economy, voters didn't necessarily embrace lower taxes. In Massachusetts, they rejected a measure to repeal the personal income tax, which supplies 40% of the state's budget. Democratic Gov. Deval Patrick warned it would force deep cuts in services statewide.

In South Dakota, voters considered a ban on abortion, except in cases of rape, incest of when the woman's health was at risk.

California voters considered whether to require parental notification for a minor to get an abortion, and a first-of-its-kind abortion measure in Colorado would define human life as starting "from the moment of fertilization." Proponents, including the Colorado Right to Life, and opponents, including NARAL Pro-Choice America, agreed it would criminalize abortion and halt embryonic stem-cell research.

In Michigan, a ballot asked voters whether they would amend the state's constitution to repeal its existing ban on research involving embryos.

Voters considered varying measures that affect immigrants, including one that Arizona rejected that would have revoked the business licenses of employers who knowingly hired illegal immigrants. Missouri voted to make English the state's official language. In Oregon, voters considered whether to limit the teaching of bilingual education to two years or less.

Contributing: Peter Eisler, in Raleigh, N.C.; Larry Copeland in Tampa; Marisol Bello in Detroit; Dennis Cauchon in Columbus, Ohio; Janet Kornblum in San Francisco; Mike Carney in Washington; Wendy Koch in McLean, Va.; the Associated Press







Obama victory sparks cheers worldwide
TOKYO, Nov 5 - In concert halls and ballrooms, in plazas and at beach parties, people across the globe hailed Barack Obama's election as a stroke for racial equality and voiced hopes his presidency would herald a balanced, less confrontational America.

Throngs crowded before TVs or listened to blaring radios for the latest updates. In Sydney, Australians filled a hotel ballroom; in Rio, Brazilians partied on the beach. In the town of Obama in Japan, dancers cheered in delight when their namesake's victory was declared.

Observers - many in countries where the idea of a minority being elected leader is unthinkable - expressed amazement and satisfaction that the United States could overcome centuries of racial strife an elect an African-American as president.

Many who live in countries where the idea of a minority being elected leader is unthinkable expressed amazement and satisfaction that the United States could overcome centuries of racial strife and elect an African-American – and one with Hussein as a middle name – as president.

“What an inspiration. He is the first truly global US president the world has ever had,” said Pracha Kanjananont, a 29-year-old Thai sitting at a Starbuck’s in Bangkok. “He had an Asian childhood, African parentage and has a Middle Eastern name. He is a truly global president.”

In an interconnected world where people in its farthest reaches could monitor the presidential race blow-by-blow, many observers echoed Obama’s own campaign mantra as they struggled to put into words their sense that his election marked an important turning point.

“I really think this is going to change the world,” gushed Akihiko Mukohama, 34, the lead singer of a band that traveled to Obama, Japan, to perform at a promotional event for the president-elect. He wore an “I Love Obama” T-shirt.

The magnitude and emotion of the world reaction illustrated the international character of the US presidency. Many look to Washington as the place where the global issues of war and peace, prosperity or crisis, are decided.

“This is an enormous outcome for all of us,” said John Wood, the former New Zealand ambassador to the US. “We have to hope and pray that President Obama can move forward in ways which are constructive and beneficial to all of us.”

Hopes were also high among those critical of President Bush’s policies that an Obama victory would bring in a more inclusive, internationally cooperative U.S. approach. Many cited the Iraq war as the type of blunder Obama was unlikely to repeat.

At a party in Rio de Janeiro where Brazilians and Americans watched results come in, 33-year-old music producer Zanna said an Obama win would show that “Americans have learned something from the bad experiences of the Bush administration and that they choose well – that they choose Obama.”

Indeed, even as they raised expectations, many US-watchers were quick to point out that Obama would have to confront enormous problems once in office: wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, tenacious difficulties in the Middle East and North Korea, a world economy in turmoil.

Europe, where Obama is overwhelmingly popular, is one region that looked eagerly to an Obama administration for a revival in warm relations after the Bush government’s chilly rift with the continent over the Iraq war.

“At a time when we have to confront immense challenges together, your election raises great hopes in France, in Europe and in the rest of the world,” French President Nicolas Sarkozy said in a congratulations letter to Obama.

Skepticism, however, was high in the Muslim world. The Bush administration alienated those in the Middle East by mistreating prisoners at its detention centre for terrorism suspects at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and inmates at Iraq’s Abu Ghraib prison – human rights violations also condemned worldwide.

Some Iraqis, who have suffered through five years of a war ignited by the United States and its allies, said they would believe positive change when they saw it.

“Obama’s victory will do nothing for the Iraqi issue nor for the Palestinian issue,” said Muneer Jamal, a Baghdad resident. “I think all the promises Obama made during the campaign will remain mere promises.”

In Pakistan, a country vital to the US-led war on the al-Qaeda terrorist network and neighbour to Afghanistan, many hoped Obama would bring some respite from rising militant violence that many blame on Bush.

Still, Mohammed Arshad, a 28-year-old schoolteacher in the capital, Islamabad, doubted Obama’s ability to change US foreign policy dramatically.

“It is true that Bush gave America a very bad name. He has become a symbol of hate. But I don’t think the change of face will suddenly make any big difference,” he said.

Many expressed hopes that Obama would restore the American economic leadership they said was needed for the world to reverse a punishing financial meltdown. Some in Asia, a region heavily dependent on exports to the US market, worried the Democrat would try to protect American producers at their expense.

“The one thing that I don’t approve of Obama is that he is an economic protectionist. He’s in favour of protected economies, instead of free markets,” said university student Yu Fangjing, 20, in Hong Kong. “It’s not good for the world.”

Still, many around the world found Obama’s international roots – his father was Kenyan, and he lived four years in Indonesia as a child – compelling and attractive.

Kenya’s President Mwai Kibaki declared a public holiday on Thursday in honour of Obama’s election victory, and people across Africa stayed up all night or woke before dawn Wednesday to watch the U.S. election results roll in.

“He’s in!” said Rachel Ndimu, 23, a business student who joined hundreds of others at the residence of the US ambassador in Nairobi. “I think this is awesome, and the whole world is backing him.”

In Jakarta, hundreds of students at his former elementary school gathered around a television set to watch as results came in, erupting in cheers when he was declared winner and then pouring into the courtyard where they hugged each other and danced in the rain.

“We’re so proud!” Alsya Nadin, a spunky 10-year-old in pink-framed glasses, said as her classmates chanted “Obama! Obama!”

- AP








Stunning victory a big moment in history
Obama gives his acceptance speech at Grant Park in Chicago today. — AP pic
WASHINGTON, Nov 5 - Democrat Barack Obama wrote his name indelibly into the pages of American history Tuesday, engineering a social and political upheaval to become the country’s first black president-elect in a runaway victory over Republican John McCain.

The 72-year-old Arizona senator quickly called his opponent to concede defeat and congratulate his rival in the longest and most costly presidential campaign in American history.

McCain spoke graciously at an outdoor rally in Arizona, commending Obama on his victory and emphasising that he understood its special importance to African-Americans.

“The American people have spoken, and spoken clearly,” McCain told disappointed supporters in Arizona, many who booed and growled as he called for the nation to unify behind the victor and his running mate, Joe Biden.

The 47-year-old Illinois senator, son of a white mother from Kansas and an African father from Kenya, mined a deep vein of national discontent, promising Americans hope and change throughout a nearly flawless 21-month campaign for the White House.

Obama (left) kisses his wife Michelle after addressing supporters at the election night rally in Chicago today. — AP pic
Obama stepped through a door opened 145 years ago when Abraham Lincoln, a fellow Illinois politician, issued the Emancipation Proclamation that freed African-Americans from enslavement in the rebellious South in the midst of a wrenching civil war.

The powerful orator lays claim to the White House on Jan 20, only 43 years after the country enacted a law that banned the disenfranchisement of blacks in many Southern states where poll taxes and literacy tests were common at the time.

With victories in Florida, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia and other battleground states, Obama built a commanding lead over McCain after surging in the polls in the midst of a national financial crisis. He and his fellow Democrats sought to link McCain to the unpopular George W. Bush.

Obama soared into the national spotlight with his electrifying speech at the 2004 Democratic National Convention, when he was making his first run for the Senate and polishing his message of unity in a country that was mired in partisan anger.

Democrats also were expanding their majorities in both chambers of Congress.

Cheering, screaming and waving flags, an estimated 50,000-plus Obama supporters welcomed his election in a delirious victory celebration in the senator’s hometown.

They crammed into Grant Park to be a part of something that would be remembered for generations.

The downtown Chicago park, where police fought anti-war protesters during the turbulent 1968 Democratic convention, was transformed on an unseasonably balmy night by white tents and a stage lined with American flags and hung with red, white and blue bunting.

Lighted windows in the skyscrapers lining the park added to the festive atmosphere, spelling out “USA” and “Vote 2008.”

Watching the results on a jumbo TV screen, the crowd erupted in cheers each time Obama put yet another state in his victory column. - AP








Greater Expectations1 of 11 Adek Berry / AFP / Getty1. Malaysia
Article ToolsPrintEmailSphereAddThisRSSYahoo! Buzz
What seemed audacious and improbable before is now a reality. In Obama's victory are sown the seeds of great expectations that a truly new chapter will be written in the history of the world.

Muslim nations will have cause to celebrate this triumph; it offers prospects for genuine dialogue and engagement and should witness the politics of diplomacy supplant the politics of war and the theology of terror. Other nations traditionally at loggerheads with America may find reason to reciprocate to a more balanced approach.

—By Anwar Ibrahim
Former Deputy Prime Minister





















The People’s Parliament
We are here, not because we are law-breakers; we are here in our efforts to become law-makers - Emmeline Pankhurst

44th US President : The son of a black Kenyan father and white mother from Kansas
November 5, 2008


Obama stepped through a door opened 145 years ago when Abraham Lincoln, a fellow Illinois politician, issued the Emancipation Proclamation that freed African-Americans from enslavement in the rebellious South in the midst of a wrenching civil war.

The powerful orator lays claim to the White House on Jan 20, only 43 years after the country enacted a law that banned the disenfranchisement of blacks in many Southern states where poll taxes and literacy tests were common at the time. - Malaysianinsider

The quote in Malaysianinsider from vanquished McCain, in reference to Obama’s historical win, got me thinking about how, in the matter of some months, this country of ours may be cursed with a leader whose appointment appointment to the highest political office we, the people, have had no say in. This cannot be right.

“The American people have spoken, and spoken clearly”

I leave you with two quotations by Obama from the days when he was still trying to achieve the seemingly impossible, in the hope that we may draw inspiration from the same in the days to come.

‘Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We are the change that we seek’.

‘It took a lot of blood, sweat and tears to get to where we are today, but we have just begun. Today we begin in earnest the work of making sure that the world we leave our children is just a little bit better than the one we inhabit today’.













The Unthinkable Happened: America Elects a Black President
Wednesday, November 05, 2008



We ask:

Will Malaysians ever see in their life time a Chinese/Indian/Iban/ Dayak Malaysian Prime Minister or even a Deputy Prime Minister?

Unlikely, as long as we choose to continue to elect UMNO to win government.
- Malaysian Unplug








If Obama is elected president, he will be, at 47, among the youngest presidents in history. His Republican opponent, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., would be the oldest presidential candidate to win a first term in office at age 72.

Obama became the fifth African-American senator in U.S. history.

He was the first black president of the Harvard Law Review.

Background

Born to a white, American mother and a black, Kenyan father, Obama has spoken openly of his struggle to find acceptance in the black community.

Barack Obama was born in Honolulu, Hawaii on August 4, 1961, to Barack Obama, Sr. (born in Nyanza Province, Kenya) and Ann Dunham (born in Wichita, Kansas).

His parents met while both were attending the University of Hawaii at Manoa, where his father was enrolled as a foreign student. Barack Obama’s birthname is Barack Hussein Obama. She married Barack Obama Sr. three months after she becomes pregnant with his child. They were both students at the time. He was a dynamic, captivating, mesmerizing intellectual and the first black student at the University of Hawaii. He left Hawaii and his family when Barack was one year old and went to Harvard to further his education.

Barack Obama, Sr.was born in 1936 in Nyangoma-Kogelo, Siaya District (now in Bondo District), Kenya. His father, Hussein Onyango Obama (c. 1895-1979),[1] belonged to the Luo tribe. Barack Obama Sr. died age 46, from injuries received in an automobile accident.









Wednesday, November 5, 2008

Lesson from Barack Obama's victory

History has been created. A black man will now sit in the White House. It's surely a lesson for the world. The majority of Americans, especially the new and younger voters, believed that he is the man who could do the job. The fact is that the face of America has changed. The minorities, put together, have become the majority. But more than that - people want a change. They are just fed up of the old politics. They are fed up of the same political rhetorics and stupidity of some established politicians.

What's the lesson for Malaysia? The March 8 election results was just the beginning. Eight months later, we should have learn from the implications of the results but unfortunately some of us have not done so. While steps have been taken to face the financial turmoil ahead, some of our politicians and activists seemed more concerned with some road signs in Penang. It had to take someone from Pahang to file a legal action in Penang. Doesn't that speak volumes of what it means? Some of us quarrel over whether a non-Malay should be the acting general manager of PKNS, which is hardly the most powerful position in the state. Deputy Barisan Nasional Youth chairman? It was shot down outright by some. It is time for our politicians to grow up because the majority of Malaysians have grown up. Race politics is yesterday's politics.









Obama has won.
Now it's time to heal global economy.
CHANGE WE CAN, Obama said throughout his campaign.

America, in their lifetime, responded well and put in the first non-White president into the White House -- significantly after trolling for 232 gruelling years since Independence.


Frontpage November 5, 2008, The Bakersfield Californian
It has been a long, gruel race to the White House. Crisis helped Obama. Can Obama help solve crisis?

Having survived eight years of Bushism, are we now seeing a new president, but the same problems?

I hope the euphoria will die down soon.

More than half the world is financing the US economy, and in a way, life-supporting the greenback as countries use the US$ for their forex benchmark and national reserves. Structurally, in finance and economy, this is dicey business of a global scale.

Obama must now manage US economy well so that all US$-reliant economies which are owed trillions in off-balanced trade will not be made the contagion victims of domestic economic turmoil in his homeland.

For Malaysia which eulogises "anyone from a minority group can be a nation’s leader", let's make sure it starts from home.

America has changed. Can we, Malaysia -- even in 232 years?


Posted by Jeff Ooi on November 6, 2008 02:08 PM | Permalink
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Change?

Yes, we can. Maybe next election? But for now we need to keep counting it to make sure we don't get short-changed.

Posted by: LC Teh | November 6, 2008 02:58 PM

Change and short-changed?

Over here, the reunification of Umno seems to be the key message to the voters.

But money politics has gotten in the way. The campaigners will therefore, as has happened in elections before, be beholden to their funders, and if elected, cuffed to express gratitude by future contracts.

Pump-priming contracts are small, and open tenders for them already decided by how the tenderers are classified.

It's the other contracts above those which will remain a question mark.

Therefore, how can the rakyat discern what is changed and what is not changed when everything is not made transparent, open and accountable for integrity to entrench itself so that future generations of politicians can be guided by its principle to defend the interests of this nation?

Yet, to unite the hoi-polloi by circling the wagon, fear is again struck by tarring imagined threats seen and unseen.

Even so, a Malay blogger has already asked - if there's a contract, why the need to assert supremacy, and for that matter, if there is already inborn supremacy, why the need for a contract? These are hard questions to answer.

So at the end of the road, it is the need for some to ascend to power using fear as the instrument to galvanize the masses over the matters of contract and supremacy, neither of which seem to advantage anyone in this open world where even an ex-kenyan can be president of the USA, one of whose states being already helmed by an ex-austrian (aka Terminator).

Is it in the weather or food of the US that is so different from that here? Or, maybe some special traits here not found there?

If you want a good marriage, say for the sake of the lady 'may the best man win.'

Otherwise, weak offsprings and indifferent futures for all.








Thursday, October 23, 2008
185] Obama for Putrajaya
Obama for Putrajaya
Azly Rahman
http://azlyrahman-illuminations.blogspot.com



"…Haji Ramli Street was a dirt lane where Obama used to while away the hours kicking a soccer ball. In the long rainy season, it turned to thick, mucky soup; Obama and his friends wore plastic bags over their shoes to walk though it," said Adi, who at 46 is the same age as Obama….


MCPX

"Neighborhood Muslims worshiped in a nearby house, which has since been replaced by a larger mosque. Sometimes, when the muezzin sounded the call to prayer, Lolo and Barry would walk to the makeshift mosque together.

… "His mother often went to the church, but Barry was Muslim. He went to the mosque. I remember him wearing a sarong," said Adi.

- reported by Paul Watson in The Baltimore Sun, March 16, 2007

"… given the increasing diversity of America's population, the dangers of sectarianism have never been greater. Whatever we once were, we are no longer just a Christian nation; we are also a Jewish nation, a Muslim nation, a Buddhist nation, a Hindu nation, and a nation of nonbelievers. …

And even if we did have only Christians in our midst, if we expelled every non-Christian from the United States of America, whose Christianity would we teach in the schools?

Would we go with James Dobson's, or Al Sharpton's? Which passages of Scripture should guide our public policy? Should we go with Leviticus, which suggests slavery is ok and that eating shellfish is abomination?

How about Deuteronomy, which suggests stoning your child if he strays from the faith? Or should we just stick to the Sermon on the Mount - a passage that is so radical that it's doubtful that our own Defence Department would survive its application?"
- Barack Obama Call to renewal: keynote address June 28, 2006

Barack Hussein Obama for prime minister of Malaysia?

Of course this is a silly proposition, unless Malaysia is USA's 52nd state! We would like to see Malaysia evolve into a country in which race nor religion matter in the appointment of prime ministers.

What matter one's moral righteousness, intellectual depth, uncompromising multiculturalist outlook, undying championing of the Constitution, prioritising of needs versus wants, and commitment to a two-term (eight year) prime ministership.

Obama's America votes

With less than two weeks before the most exciting US Presidential election, Americans are again, as in the tradition of its democracy, getting an education of what it takes to be a president and what it means to be a voter.

Will the United States see her first "most hybridised", "hypertextualised", "heteroglossic" president in Barack Obama? And how can Malaysia learn from yet another interesting episode in American history?

No, I am not campaigning for Obama, McCain, Bidden, or Palin. Being a permanent resident, I cannot vote for America's president anyway - not yet. Nor have I campaigned for any prime ministerial candidate of Malaysia - not yet, as I am still waiting for a leader Malaysia deserves.

At this moment, I am more interested in analysing phenomena and to write about what is dear to my heart: the possibility of a republic of virtue that begins with a republic of the self.

Barack is a phenomena America is coming to terms with. He is an embodiment of America the absurd – of a white America wishing to move away from "whiteness" and dropping the "knapsack of white privilege".

Barack means 'barkath' or 'blessings' perhaps this country needs to escape from a military-industrial complex it created.

Barack is a product of two of America' best Ivy League traditions; a Columbia University graduate in Politics and International Relations and a Harvard graduate in Law.

He is "hybridised," with a Kansas-born white mother and a Kenyan father and an Indonesian stepfather. He is also said to be a distant cousin of Vice President Dick Cheney whose ancestors are said to be great monarchs of Europe.

Barack has lived in Hawaii, Indonesia, New York, and Illinois. His Indonesian childhood experience as Barry Soetoro, son of Lolo Soetoro, has brought him fond memories of growing up Javanese and mingling with Muslims children in a secular school mistaken as 'radical madrasah' by right-wing Republican Islamophobic media spinmasters.

Hey, but what if Barack is a Muslim and proud of it - should Middle America freak out? Such is testament of how racialised this country is and how uncultured and ignorant Middle America can be. But that experience makes Barack Hussein Obama a deeply kaleidoscopic, hybridised, and cosmopolitan America citizen of the world, I presume.

Barack, Harlem, and the Bronx

Barack's New York years at West 116th Street, at the School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA) put him in touch with the reality of the "Harlem-ness and the Bronx-ness" of America.

A few more blocks down West 120th Amsterdam and Broadway, one sees a different reality of a Third World America.

America of the 'projects' against the backdrop of graffiti, ever-new dance forms, and gangsta rap, hip hop, and reggaeton

Barack's education at Columbia must have accorded him with the nurturing of empathy especially for the multicultural poor. His Harvard years must have trained his mind in the cognitive tradition of John F. Kennedy.

He is an articulate man whose oratorical skills can even surpass that of the accomplished African-American actor Denzel Washington's. Barack can even appear cameo in Denzel's next movie perhaps called Abraham Lincoln Resurrected; the story of Barack Obama.

Barack represents the emergence of America the radical multicultural; a breakdown of grand narrative and hopefully a shift from America the warmonger to America the diplomat and peacemaker.

John McCain, a former prisoner of war, represents what America must evolve out of, replaced by a young and sensible man of all seasons and all reasons: Barack Obama.

United States of America must now be called United Socialist America, with the disappearance of Wall Street and the nationalisation of the US "central" bank.

A demise of the financial system that has propped up the Evil Empire in its crusade for global reach through gunboat diplomacy and democracy for the few.

Casino capitalism which has gambled away the lives of many locally and nationally is making way for a form of capitalism we do not yet know its name.

The American Century Project is cut short by 95 years.

What Malaysia deserves

Malaysia need a new Barack Obama as prime minister.

Well not necessarily a Columbia and Harvard graduate but someone with a good education and a good heart and a good set of analytical skills.

Most importantly Malaysia needs a prime minister for all Malaysians, not only for this or that race.

In Malaysia's Barack will lie a man or woman who can dismantle all race-base policies.

Malaysia do not need a John McCain as prime minister.

In the Malaysia of John McCain, we will have a system of control akin to militarism, in which secret patronage politics, authoritarianism, and regimentation of a synthesis of Oriental Despotism and modern corporate crony capitalism reigns.

In McCain's Malaysia, we have the institutionalisation of the war system, in which the regime is at war with its people and institutions and ideologues have been taken as prisoners of war.

Especially in this difficult times of "transition" of power that is giving Malaysians a cruel choice of a hegemonic flow.

If we are to have an Obamanised Malaysia, we will have longer campaigns that makes the prime-ministerial race more intelligent.

Creating more respect for our democratic institutions more respect for the rule of law, more informed citizenry whom will not tolerate civil rights violation and more articulated promise for radical educational reform.

Most importantly a prime minister committed to dismantling any form of race-base political parties - politics that will always be the root of Malaysia's postmodern/hypermodern ethic and religious conflicts.

Of course Barack Obama will never become a prime minister of Malaysia. It is a silly proposition.

But may Malaysia be blessed with a leader it deserves at a time when the old regime, with its own "Bush-ism and Reaganomics as twin ideology, is rudely demanding for its rights to continue to rule a restless and radicalised multicultural nation.

Of course Obama would not want to belong in any of Malaysia's race-based party - something that'll painfully remind him of Jim Crow, Montgomery and Selma, Alabama.




Posted by DR. AZLY RAHMAN at 8:40 PM

















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Barack Obama
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Barack Obama



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

President-elect of the United States
Taking office
January 20, 2009
Vice President Joe Biden (elect)
Succeeding George W. Bush

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Junior Senator
from Illinois
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 4, 2005
Serving with Dick Durbin
Preceded by Peter Fitzgerald
Succeeded by TBA

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Member of the Illinois Senate
from the 13th district
In office
January 8, 1997 – November 4, 2004
Preceded by Alice Palmer
Succeeded by Kwame Raoul

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Born August 4, 1961 (1961-08-04) (age 47)
Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.A.
Birth name Barack Hussein Obama II
Political party Democratic Party
Spouse Michelle Obama (m. 1992)
Children Malia Ann (b. 1998)
Sasha (b. 2001)
Residence Kenwood, Chicago, Illinois
Alma mater Occidental College
Columbia University
Harvard Law School
Profession Attorney
Politician
Religion United Church of Christ
Signature
Website Barack Obama - U.S. Senator for Illinois
More detailed articles about Barack Obama
————————————
Early life and career · (Family · Memoir)
Illinois Senate career
U.S. Senate career
Presidential primaries · Obama–Biden 2008
Policy positions · Public image

Barack Hussein Obama II (pronounced /bəˈrɑːk hʊˈseɪn oʊˈbɑːmə/; born August 4, 1961) is the Junior United States Senator from Illinois, and the President-elect[1][2] of the United States of America.[3] He will take office as the forty-fourth President of the United States on January 20, 2009. Obama is the first African American to be elected President of the United States,[4][5][6] and was the first to be nominated for President by Democratic - a major U.S. political party.[7] Obama is also the first candidate born in Hawaii to have been nominated and subsequently elected president. [8]

A graduate of Columbia University and Harvard Law School, he became the first African American to serve as president of the Harvard Law Review. Obama worked as a community organizer and practiced as a civil rights attorney before serving three terms in the Illinois Senate from 1997 to 2004. He taught constitutional law at the University of Chicago Law School from 1992 to 2004. Following an unsuccessful bid for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives in 2000, he announced his campaign for the U.S. Senate in January 2003. After a primary victory in March 2004, Obama delivered the keynote address at the Democratic National Convention in July 2004. He was elected to the Senate in November 2004 with 70 percent of the vote.

As a member of the Democratic minority in the 109th Congress, he helped create legislation to control conventional weapons and to promote greater public accountability in the use of federal funds. He also made official trips to Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. During the 110th Congress, he helped create legislation regarding lobbying and electoral fraud, climate change, nuclear terrorism, and care for returned U.S. military personnel. Obama announced his presidential campaign in February 2007, and was formally nominated at the 2008 Democratic National Convention with Delaware senator Joe Biden as his running mate. In the November 4, 2008 United States Presidential election he won 53% of the popular vote, and 349 electoral votes to rival John McCain's 46% of the popular vote and 173 electoral votes (with 15 electoral votes belonging to North Carolina as yet unclaimed), winning the election and setting him to become President of the United States when inaugurated on January 20, 2009.[9]

Contents [hide]
1 Early life and career
2 State legislator, 1997–2004
3 2004 U.S. Senate campaign
4 U.S. Senator, from 2005
4.1 Legislation
4.2 Committees
5 2008 presidential campaign
6 Political positions
7 Family and personal life
8 Cultural and political image
9 Written works
10 Notes
11 References
12 Further reading
13 External links



Early life and career
Main article: Early life and career of Barack Obama

A young Obama pictured with his mother, Ann Dunham, who raised him.Barack Obama was born at the Kapi'olani Medical Center for Women & Children in Honolulu, Hawaii,[10] to Barack Hussein Obama, Sr., a Luo from Nyang’oma Kogelo, Nyanza Province, Kenya, and Ann Dunham, a white American from Wichita, Kansas[11] of mainly English, Scottish and Irish descent.[12][13][14] His parents met in 1960 while attending the University of Hawaii at Manoa, where his father was a foreign student.[15][16] The couple married February 2, 1961;[17] they separated when Obama was two years old and subsequently divorced in 1964.[16] Obama's father returned to Kenya and saw his son only once more before dying in an automobile accident in 1982.[18]

After her divorce, Dunham married Lolo Soetoro, and the family moved to Soetoro's home country of Indonesia in 1967, where Obama attended local schools, such as Asisi, in Jakarta until he was ten years old. He then returned to Honolulu to live with his maternal grandparents while attending Punahou School from the fifth grade in 1971 until his graduation from high school in 1979.[19] Obama's mother returned to Hawaii in 1972 for several years, and then in 1977 went back to Indonesia, where she worked as an anthropological field worker. She stayed there most of the rest of her life, returning to Hawaii in 1994. She died of ovarian cancer in 1995.[20]

As an adult Obama admitted that during high school he used marijuana, cocaine, and alcohol, which he described at the 2008 Civil Forum on the Presidency as his greatest moral failure.[21][22]

Following high school, Obama moved to Los Angeles, where he studied at Occidental College for two years.[23] He then transferred to Columbia College in New York City, where he majored in political science with a specialization in international relations.[24] Obama graduated with a B.A. from Columbia in 1983, then at the start of the following year worked for a year at the Business International Corporation[25][26] and then at the New York Public Interest Research Group.[27][28]

After four years in New York City, Obama moved to Chicago, where he was hired as director of the Developing Communities Project (DCP), a church-based community organization originally comprising eight Catholic parishes in Greater Roseland (Roseland, West Pullman, and Riverdale) on Chicago's far South Side, and worked there for three years from June 1985 to May 1988.[27][29] During his three years as the DCP's director, its staff grew from one to thirteen and its annual budget grew from $70,000 to $400,000, with accomplishments including helping set up a job training program, a college preparatory tutoring program, and a tenants' rights organization in Altgeld Gardens.[30] Obama also worked as a consultant and instructor for the Gamaliel Foundation, a community organizing institute.[31] In mid-1988, he traveled for the first time to Europe for three weeks and then for five weeks in Kenya, where he met many of his Kenyan relatives for the first time.[32]

Obama entered Harvard Law School in late 1988. At the end of his first year, he was selected, based on his grades and a writing competition, as an editor of the Harvard Law Review.[33] In February 1990, in his second year, he was elected president of the Law Review, a full-time volunteer position functioning as editor-in-chief and supervising the Law Review's staff of eighty editors.[34] Obama's election as the first black president of the Law Review was widely reported and followed by several long, detailed profiles.[34] During his summers, he returned to Chicago where he worked as a summer associate at the law firms of Sidley & Austin in 1989 and Hopkins & Sutter in 1990.[35] After graduating with a Juris Doctor (J.D.) magna cum laude[36][37] from Harvard in 1991, he returned to Chicago.[33]

The publicity from his election as the first black president of the Harvard Law Review led to a publishing contract and advance for a book about race relations.[38] In an effort to recruit him to their faculty, the University of Chicago Law School provided Obama with a fellowship and an office to work on his book.[38] He originally planned to finish the book in one year, but it took much longer as the book evolved into a personal memoir. In order to work without interruptions, Obama and his wife, Michelle, traveled to Bali where he wrote for several months. The manuscript was finally published in mid-1995 as Dreams from My Father.[38]

Obama directed Illinois' Project Vote from April to October 1992, a voter registration drive with a staff of ten and seven hundred volunteers; it achieved its goal of registering 150,000 of 400,000 unregistered African-Americans in the state, and led to Crain's Chicago Business naming Obama to its 1993 list of "40 under Forty" powers to be.[39][40]


Right-to-left: Barack Obama and half-sister Maya Soetoro, with their mother Ann Dunham and grandfather Stanley Dunham, in Hawaii (early 1970s).Beginning in 1992, Obama taught constitutional law at the University of Chicago Law School for twelve years, being first classified as a Lecturer from 1992 to 1996, and then as a Senior Lecturer from 1996 to 2004.[41]

He also, in 1993, joined Davis, Miner, Barnhill & Galland, a twelve-attorney law firm specializing in civil rights litigation and neighborhood economic development, where he was an associate for three years from 1993 to 1996, then of counsel from 1996 to 2004, with his law license becoming inactive in 2002.[27][42][43]

Obama was a founding member of the board of directors of Public Allies in 1992, resigning before his wife, Michelle, became the founding executive director of Public Allies Chicago in early 1993.[27][44] He served from 1994 to 2002 on the board of directors of the Woods Fund of Chicago, which in 1985 had been the first foundation to fund the Developing Communities Project, and also from 1994 to 2002 on the board of directors of The Joyce Foundation.[27] Obama served on the board of directors of the Chicago Annenberg Challenge from 1995 to 2002, as founding president and chairman of the board of directors from 1995 to 1999.[27] He also served on the board of directors of the Chicago Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, the Center for Neighborhood Technology, and the Lugenia Burns Hope Center.[27]


State legislator, 1997–2004
Main article: Illinois Senate career of Barack Obama
Obama was elected to the Illinois Senate in 1996, succeeding State Senator Alice Palmer as Senator from Illinois' 13th District, which then spanned Chicago South Side neighborhoods from Hyde Park-Kenwood south to South Shore and west to Chicago Lawn.[45] Once elected, Obama gained bipartisan support for legislation reforming ethics and health care laws.[46] He sponsored a law increasing tax credits for low-income workers, negotiated welfare reform, and promoted increased subsidies for childcare.[47] In 2001, as co-chairman of the bipartisan Joint Committee on Administrative Rules, Obama supported Republican Governor Ryan's payday loan regulations and predatory mortgage lending regulations aimed at averting home foreclosures.[48]

Obama was reelected to the Illinois Senate in 1998, and again in 2002.[49] In 2000, he lost a Democratic primary run for the U.S. House of Representatives to four-term incumbent Bobby Rush by a margin of two to one.[50][51]

In January 2003, Obama became chairman of the Illinois Senate's Health and Human Services Committee when Democrats, after a decade in the minority, regained a majority.[52] He sponsored and led unanimous, bipartisan passage of legislation to monitor racial profiling by requiring police to record the race of drivers they detained and legislation making Illinois the first state to mandate videotaping of homicide interrogations.[47][53] During his 2004 general election campaign for U.S. Senate, police representatives credited Obama for his active engagement with police organizations in enacting death penalty reforms.[54] Obama resigned from the Illinois Senate in November 2004 following his election to the US Senate.[55]


2004 U.S. Senate campaign
See also: United States Senate election in Illinois, 2004
In mid-2002, Obama began considering a run for the U.S. Senate; he enlisted political strategist David Axelrod that fall and formally announced his candidacy in January 2003.[56] Decisions by Republican incumbent Peter Fitzgerald and his Democratic predecessor Carol Moseley Braun not to contest the race launched wide-open Democratic and Republican primary contests involving fifteen candidates.[57] Obama's candidacy was boosted by Axelrod's advertising campaign featuring images of the late Chicago Mayor Harold Washington and an endorsement by the daughter of the late Paul Simon, former U.S. Senator for Illinois.[58] He received over 52% of the vote in the March 2004 primary, emerging 29% ahead of his nearest Democratic rival.[59]

Obama's expected opponent in the general election, Republican primary winner Jack Ryan, withdrew from the race in June 2004.[60]

In July 2004, Obama wrote and delivered the keynote address at the 2004 Democratic National Convention in Boston, Massachusetts.[61] 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 spoke about changing the U.S. government's economic and social priorities. He questioned the Bush administration's management of the Iraq War and highlighted America's obligations to its soldiers. Drawing examples from U.S. history, he criticized heavily partisan views of the electorate and asked Americans to find unity in diversity, saying, "There is not a liberal America and a conservative America; there's the United States of America."[62] Broadcasts of the speech by major news organizations launched Obama's status as a national political figure and boosted his campaign for U.S. Senate.[63]

In August 2004, two months after Ryan's withdrawal and less than three months before Election Day, Alan Keyes accepted the Illinois Republican Party's nomination to replace Ryan.[64] A long-time resident of Maryland, Keyes established legal residency in Illinois with the nomination.[65] In the November 2004 general election, Obama received 70% of the vote to Keyes's 27%, the largest victory margin for a statewide race in Illinois history.[66]


U.S. Senator, from 2005
Main article: United States Senate career of Barack Obama
Obama was sworn in as a senator on January 4, 2005.[67] Obama was the fifth African American Senator in U.S. history, and the third to have been popularly elected.[68] He is the only Senate member of the Congressional Black Caucus.[69] CQ Weekly, a nonpartisan publication, characterized him as a "loyal Democrat" based on analysis of all Senate votes in 2005–2007, and the National Journal ranked him as the "most liberal" senator based on an assessment of selected votes during 2007. In 2005 he was ranked sixteenth, and in 2006 he was ranked tenth.[70][71] In 2008, he was ranked by Congress.org as the eleventh most powerful Senator.[72]


Legislation
See also: List of bills sponsored by Barack Obama in the United States Senate

Senate bill sponsors Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) and Obama discussing the Coburn–Obama Transparency Act.[73]Obama voted in favor of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 and cosponsored the Secure America and Orderly Immigration Act.[74] In September 2006, Obama supported a related bill, the Secure Fence Act.[75] Obama introduced two initiatives bearing his name: Lugar–Obama, which expanded the Nunn–Lugar cooperative threat reduction concept to conventional weapons,[76] and the Coburn–Obama Transparency Act, which authorized the establishment of USAspending.gov, a web search engine on federal spending.[77] On June 3, 2008, Senator Obama, along with Senators Thomas R. Carper, Tom Coburn, and John McCain, introduced follow-up legislation: Strengthening Transparency and Accountability in Federal Spending Act of 2008.[78]

Obama sponsored legislation that would have required nuclear plant owners to notify state and local authorities of radioactive leaks, but the bill failed to pass in the full Senate after being heavily modified in committee.[79] 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.[80] In January 2007, Obama and Senator Feingold introduced a corporate jet provision to the Honest Leadership and Open Government Act, which was signed into law in September 2007.[81] Obama also introduced Deceptive Practices and Voter Intimidation Prevention Act, a bill to criminalize deceptive practices in federal elections[82] and the Iraq War De-Escalation Act of 2007,[83] neither of which have been signed into law.


Obama and Richard Lugar visit a Russian mobile launch missile dismantling facility.[84]Later in 2007, Obama sponsored an amendment to the Defense Authorization Act adding safeguards for personality disorder military discharges.[85] This amendment passed the full Senate in the spring of 2008.[86] He sponsored the Iran Sanctions Enabling Act supporting divestment of state pension funds from Iran's oil and gas industry, which has not passed committee, and co-sponsored legislation to reduce risks of nuclear terrorism.[87][88] Obama also sponsored a Senate amendment to the State Children's Health Insurance Program providing one year of job protection for family members caring for soldiers with combat-related injuries.[89]


Committees
Obama held assignments on the Senate Committees for Foreign Relations, Environment and Public Works and Veterans' Affairs through December 2006.[90] In January 2007, he left the Environment and Public Works committee and took additional assignments with Health, Education, Labor and Pensions and Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.[91] He also became Chairman of the Senate's subcommittee on European Affairs.[92] As a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Obama made official trips to Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Central Asia and Africa. He met with Mahmoud Abbas before he became President of Palestine, and gave a speech at the University of Nairobi condemning corruption in the Kenyan government.[93][94][95][96]


2008 presidential campaign
Main articles: Barack Obama presidential primary campaign, 2008 and Barack Obama presidential campaign, 2008
Wikinews has related news:
Barack Obama elected 44th President of the United StatesOn February 10, 2007, Obama announced his candidacy for President of the United States in front of the Old State Capitol building in Springfield, Illinois.[97][98] The choice of the announcement site was symbolic because it was also where Abraham Lincoln delivered his historic "House Divided" speech in 1858.[99] Throughout the campaign, Obama has emphasized the issues of rapidly ending the Iraq War, increasing energy independence, and providing universal health care, at one point identifying these as his top three priorities.[100]


Obama on stage with his wife and two daughters just before announcing his presidential campaign in Springfield, Illinois.Obama's campaign raised $58 million during the first half of 2007, of which donations of less than $200, classified as "small donations" by campaign laws, accounted for $16.4 million. The $58 million set the record for fundraising by a presidential campaign in the first six months of the calendar year before the election.[101] The magnitude of the small donation portion was outstanding from both the absolute and relative perspectives.[102] In January 2008, his campaign set another fundraising record with $36.8 million, the most ever raised in one month by a presidential candidate in the Democratic primaries.[103]

Among the January 2008 DNC-sanctioned state contests, Obama tied with Hillary Clinton for delegates in the New Hampshire primary and won more delegates than Clinton in the Iowa, Nevada and South Carolina elections and caucuses. On Super Tuesday, he emerged with 20 more delegates than Clinton.[104] He again broke fundraising records in the first two months of 2008, raising over $90 million for his primary to Clinton's $45 million.[105] After Super Tuesday, Obama won the eleven remaining February primaries and caucuses.[106] Obama and Clinton split delegates and states nearly equally in the March 4 contests of Vermont, Texas, Ohio, and Rhode Island; Obama closed the month by winning Wyoming and Mississippi.[107]

In March 2008, a controversy broke out concerning Obama's former pastor of twenty years, Jeremiah Wright,[108] after ABC News broadcast clips of his racially and politically charged sermons.[108][109] Initially, Obama responded by defending Wright's wider role in Chicago's African American community,[110] but condemned his remarks and ended Wright's relationship with the campaign.[111] During the controversy, Obama delivered a speech entitled "A More Perfect Union"[112] that addressed issues of race. Obama subsequently resigned from Trinity United Church of Christ "to avoid the impression that he endorsed the entire range of opinions expressed at that church."[113][114][115]


General David Petraeus gives an aerial tour of Baghdad to Barack Obama and Chuck Hagel.During April, May, and June, Obama won the North Carolina, Oregon, and Montana primaries and remained ahead in the count of pledged delegates, while Clinton won the Pennsylvania, Indiana, West Virginia, Kentucky, Puerto Rico, and South Dakota primaries. During the period, Obama received endorsements from more superdelegates than did Clinton.[116] On May 31, the Democratic National Committee agreed to seat all of the Michigan and Florida delegates at the national convention, each with a half-vote, narrowing Obama's delegate lead while increasing the delegate count needed to win.[117] On June 3, with all states counted, Obama passed the threshold to become the presumptive nominee.[118][119] On that day, he gave a victory speech in St. Paul, Minnesota. Clinton suspended her campaign and endorsed him on June 7.[120] From that point on, he campaigned for the general election race against Senator John McCain, the Republican nominee.

On June 19, Obama became the first major-party presidential candidate to turn down public financing in the general election since the system was created in 1976, reversing his earlier intention to accept it.[121]

On August 23, 2008, Obama selected Delaware Senator Joe Biden as his vice presidential running mate.[122] At the Democratic National Convention in Denver, Colorado, Obama's former rival Hillary Clinton gave a speech strongly supporting Obama's candidacy and later called for Obama to be nominated by acclamation as the Democratic presidential candidate.[123][124] Then, on August 28, Obama delivered a speech to the 84,000 supporters in Denver. During the speech, which was viewed by over 38 million people worldwide, he accepted his party's nomination and presented his policy goals.[125][126]


Obama delivering his victory speech at Grant ParkAfter McCain was nominated as the Republican presidential candidate, polls indicated that he had closed the gap with Obama. There were three presidential debates between Obama and McCain in September and October 2008.[127][128]

After the debates, Obama pulled ahead in national polls. On November 2, 2008, Obama's grandmother, Madelyn Dunham, died from cancer at the age of 86. Obama learned of his grandmother's death on November 3, one day before his election as the 44th President of the United States.[129][130]

On November 4, 2008, Barack Obama defeated John McCain and became the first African American to be elected President of the United States.[131] In his victory speech, delivered before a crowd of hundreds of thousands of his supporters in Chicago, Obama proclaimed that "change has come to America."[132]

For futher information, see Presidential transition of Barack Obama.

Political positions
Main article: Political positions of Barack Obama

Obama campaigning in Pennsylvania, October 2008.Obama was an early opponent of the Bush administration's policies on Iraq.[133] On October 2, 2002, the day President George W. Bush and Congress agreed on the joint resolution authorizing the Iraq War,[134] Obama addressed the first high-profile Chicago anti-Iraq War rally in Federal Plaza,[135] speaking out against the war.[136][137] On March 16, 2003, the day President Bush issued his 48-hour ultimatum to Saddam Hussein to leave Iraq before the U.S. invasion of Iraq,[138] Obama addressed the largest Chicago anti-Iraq War rally to date in Daley Plaza and told the crowd that "it's not too late" to stop the war.[139]

Obama stated that if elected he would enact budget cuts in the range of tens of billions of dollars, stop investing in "unproven" missile defense systems, not "weaponize" space, "slow development of Future Combat Systems," and work towards eliminating all nuclear weapons. Obama favors ending development of new nuclear weapons, reducing the current U.S. nuclear stockpile, enacting a global ban on production of fissile material, and seeking negotiations with Russia in order to take ICBMs off high alert status.[140]

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.[141] In a March 2007 speech to AIPAC, a pro-Israel lobby, he said that the primary way to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons is through talks and diplomacy, although he did not rule out military action.[142] Obama has indicated that he would engage in "direct presidential diplomacy" with Iran without preconditions.[143][144][145] 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, even without the support of the Pakistani government.[146]

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.[147] He has divested $180,000 in personal holdings of Sudan-related stock, and has urged divestment from companies doing business in Iran.[148] 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."[149]

In economic affairs, in April 2005, he defended the New Deal social welfare policies of Franklin D. Roosevelt and opposed Republican proposals to establish private accounts for Social Security.[150] 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.[151] Shortly before announcing his presidential campaign, Obama said he supports universal healthcare in the United States.[152] Obama proposes to reward teachers for performance from traditional merit pay systems, assuring unions that changes would be pursued through the collective bargaining process.[153]


Obama speaking at a rally in Conway, South Carolina.[154]In September 2007, he blamed special interests for distorting the U.S. tax code.[155] His plan would eliminate taxes for senior citizens with incomes of less than $50,000 a year, repeal income tax cuts for those making over $250,000 as well as the capital gains and dividends tax cut,[156] close corporate tax loopholes, lift the income cap on Social Security taxes, restrict offshore tax havens, and simplify filing of income tax returns by pre-filling wage and bank information already collected by the IRS.[157] Announcing his presidential campaign's energy plan in October 2007, Obama proposed a cap and trade auction system to restrict carbon emissions and a ten year program of investments in new energy sources to reduce U.S. dependence on imported oil.[158] Obama proposed that all pollution credits must be auctioned, with no grandfathering of credits for oil and gas companies, and the spending of the revenue obtained on energy development and economic transition costs.[159]

Obama has encouraged Democrats to reach out to evangelicals and other religious groups.[160] 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.[161] Together with Warren and Brownback, Obama took an HIV test, as he had done in Kenya less than four months earlier.[162] He encouraged "others in public life to do the same" and not be ashamed of it.[163] 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."[164]

A method that some political scientists use for gauging ideology is to compare the annual ratings by the Americans for Democratic Action (ADA) with the ratings by the American Conservative Union (ACU).[165] Based on his years in Congress, Obama has a lifetime average conservative rating of 7.67% from the ACU,[166] and a lifetime average liberal rating of 90 percent from the ADA.[167]


Family and personal life
Main article: Family of Barack Obama

Barack Obama and his wife Michelle Obama.Obama was known as "Barry" in his youth, but asked to be addressed with his given name during his college years.[168]

Obama met his wife, Michelle Robinson, in June 1989 when he was employed as a summer associate at the Chicago law firm of Sidley Austin.[169] Assigned for three months as Obama's adviser at the firm, Robinson joined him at group social functions, but declined his initial offers to date.[170] They began dating later that summer, became engaged in 1991, and were married on October 3, 1992.[171] The couple's first daughter, Malia Ann, was born in 1998,[172] followed by a second daughter, Natasha ("Sasha"), in 2001.[173]

Applying the proceeds of a book deal,[174] in 2005 the family moved from a Hyde Park, Chicago condominium to their current $1.6 million house in neighboring Kenwood.[175] The purchase of an adjacent lot and sale of part of it to Obama by the wife of developer and friend Tony Rezko attracted media attention because of Rezko's indictment and subsequent conviction on political corruption charges that were unrelated to Obama.[176][177]

In December 2007, Money magazine estimated the Obama family's net worth at $1.3 million.[178] Their 2007 tax return showed a household income of $4.2 million—up from about $1 million in 2006 and $1.6 million in 2005—mostly from sales of his books.[179]


Obama playing basketball with U.S. military in Djibouti in 2006.[180]In a 2006 interview, 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."[181] Obama has seven half-siblings from his Kenyan father's family, six of them living, and a half-sister, Maya Soetoro-Ng, the daughter of his mother and her Indonesian second husband.[182] Obama's mother was survived by her Kansas-born mother, Madelyn Dunham[183] until her death on November 2, 2008, just before the presidential election.[184] In Dreams from My Father, Obama ties his mother's family history to possible Native American ancestors and distant relatives of Jefferson Davis, president of the southern Confederacy during the American Civil War.[185]

Obama plays basketball, a sport he participated in as a member of his high school's varsity team.[186] Before announcing his presidential candidacy, he began a well-publicized effort to quit smoking.[187]

Obama is a Christian whose religious views have evolved in his adult life. In The Audacity of Hope, Obama writes that he "was not raised in a religious household." He describes his mother, raised by non-religious parents (whom Obama has specified elsewhere as "non-practicing Methodists and Baptists") to be detached from religion, yet "in many ways the most spiritually awakened person that I have ever known." He describes his father as "raised a Muslim", but a "confirmed atheist" by the time his parents met, and his stepfather as "a man who saw religion as not particularly useful." In the book, Obama explains how, through working with black churches as a community organizer while in his twenties, he came to understand "the power of the African-American religious tradition to spur social change."[188][189] He was baptized at Trinity United Church of Christ in 1988.[190][191]


Cultural and political image
Main article: Public image of Barack Obama
With his Kenyan father and white American mother, his upbringing in Honolulu and Jakarta, and his 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.[192] 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. Obama said that "we're still locked in this notion that if you appeal to white folks then there must be something wrong."[193]

Echoing the inaugural address of John F. Kennedy, Obama acknowledged his youthful image in an October 2007 campaign speech, saying: "I wouldn't be here if, time and again, the torch had not been passed to a new generation."[194]

Many commentators mentioned Obama's international appeal as a defining factor for his public image.[195] Not only did several polls show strong support for him in other countries,[196] but Obama also established close relationships with prominent foreign politicians and elected officials even before his presidential candidacy, notably with then current British Prime Minister Tony Blair, whom he met in London in 2005,[197] with Italy's Democratic Party leader Walter Veltroni, who visited Obama's Senate office in 2005,[198] and with French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who also visited him in Washington in 2006.[199]


Written works
Obama, Barack (1995). Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance. Three Rivers Press. ISBN 0307383415. Audio Book Grammy Award Winner: Spoken word[200]
Obama, Barack (October 17, 2006). The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream. Crown Publishing Group / Three Rivers Press. ISBN 0307237699. Audio Book Grammy Award Winner: Spoken word[201][202]
Obama, Barack (March 27, 2007). Barack Obama in His Own Words. PublicAffairs. ISBN 0786720573.
National Urban League (April 17, 2007). The State of Black America 2007: Portrait of the Black Male, Foreword by Barack Obama, Beckham Publications Group. ISBN 0931761859.
Obama, Barack (July-August 2007). "Renewing American Leadership". Foreign Affairs 86 (4). Retrieved on 2008-01-14.
Obama, Barack (March 1, 2008). Barack Obama: What He Believes In – From His Own Works. Arc Manor. ISBN 1604501170.
Obama, Barack; McCain, John (June 13, 2008). Barack Obama vs. John McCain – Side by Side Senate Voting Record for Easy Comparison. Arc Manor. ISBN 1604502495.
Obama, Barack (September 9, 2008). Change We Can Believe In: Barack Obama's Plan to Renew America's Promise, Foreword by Barack Obama, Three Rivers Press. ISBN 0307460452.

Notes
^ FACTBOX: Barack Obama, Democratic President-elect (Reuters, November 5, 2008); World leaders hail Obama triumph (BBC News, November 5, 2008); Obama's victory caps struggles of previous generations (CNN, November 5, 2008)
^ The President-elect can be yielded on election day, but the official Electoral College vote is not until early December."Backgrounder: U.S. presidential elections", Xinhua News Agency (November 5, 2008). Retrieved on 2008-11-06.
^ "Barack Obama wins presidential election", CNN. Retrieved on 2008-11-05.
^ "Obama Elected President as Racial Barrier Falls", The New York Times. Retrieved on 2008-11-05.
^ 55% of White Americans classify Obama as biracial when they are told that he has a white mother, while 66% of African Americans consider him black.("Williams/Zogby Poll: Americans' Attitudes Changing Towards Multiracial Candidates", BBSNews.com (2006-12-22). Retrieved on 2007-09-23. ) Obama describes himself as "black" or "African American", using both terms interchangeably ("Transcript excerpt: Senator Barack Obama on Sixty Minutes", CBS News (2007-02-11). Retrieved on 2008-01-29. )
^ CNN (2008). "Obama: 'This is your victory'". CNN. Retrieved on November 5, 2008.
^ "First African American Nominated as Presidential Candidate of US Major Party". Voice of America (2008-08-28). Retrieved on 2008-09-18.
^ "Aloha, Mr. President! Hawaii son Barack Obama wins". Hawaii Magazine (2008-05-11).
^ BBC News US Election Results Map, as of 6 November 2008.
^ Maraniss, David (2008-08-22). "Though Obama Had to Leave to Find Himself, It Is Hawaii That Made His Rise Possible", The Washington Post. Retrieved on 2008-10-27.
^ "Born in the U.S.A.". FactCheck (August 21, 2008). Retrieved on October 24, 2008.
^ FOXNews.com - Report: Obama's Irish Roots Unearthed - Politics | Republican Party | Democratic Party | Political Spectrum
^ Barack Obama's Irish Heritage - John A. Farrell (usnews.com)
^ Tiny Irish Village Is Latest Place to Claim Obama as Its Own - washingtonpost.com
^ Obama (1995), pp. 9–10. For book excerpts, see "Barack Obama: Creation of Tales", East African (2004-11-01). Retrieved on 2008-04-13. Archived from the original on 2007-09-27.
^ a b Tim Jones (2007-03-27). "Obama's mom: Not just a girl from Kansas: Strong personalities shaped a future senator", Chicago Tribune, reprinted in Baltimore Sun. Retrieved on 2008-10-27.
^ Ripley, Amanda (2008-04-09). "The Story of Barack Obama's Mother", Time. Retrieved on 2007-04-09.
^ Merida, Kevin (2007-12-14). "The Ghost of a Father", Washington Post. Retrieved on 2008-06-24. See also: Ochieng, Philip (2004-11-01). "From Home Squared to the US Senate: How Barack Obama Was Lost and Found", East African. Retrieved on 2008-06-24. Archived from the original on 2007-09-27. 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 (2006-02-27). "Obama Receives Hero's Welcome at His Family's Ancestral Village in Kenya", Voice of America. Retrieved on 2008-06-24.
^ Serafin, Peter (2004-03-21). "Punahou Grad Stirs Up Illinois Politics", Honolulu Star-Bulletin. Retrieved on 2008-04-13. See also: Obama (1995), Chapters 3 and 4.
^ Ripley, Amanda (2008-04-09). "The Story of Barack Obama's Mother", Time. Retrieved on 2008-06-24. See also: Suryakusuma, Julia (2006-11-29). "Obama for President... of Indonesia", Jakarta Post. Retrieved on 2008-06-24.
^ "Obama, McCain talk issues at pastor's forum - CNN.com". cnn.com (2008-08-17). Retrieved on 2008-08-29.
^ "Barack Obama, asked about drug history, admits he inhaled". International Herald Tribune (2006-10-25). Retrieved on 2008-08-31.
^ "Oxy Remembers "Barry" Obama '83". Occidental College (2007-01-29). Retrieved on 2008-04-13.
^ Boss-Bicak, Shira (January 2005). "Barack Obama '83", Columbia College Today. Retrieved on 2008-06-09.
^ "Curriculum Vitae". The University of Chicago Law School. Archived from the original on 2001-05-09. Retrieved on 2008-11-03.
^ Issenberg, Sasha (2008-08-06). "Obama shows hints of his year in global finance: Tied markets to social aid", Boston Globe. Retrieved on 2008-04-13.
^ a b c d e f g Chassie, Karen (ed.) (2007). Who's Who in America, 2008. New Providence, NJ: Marquis Who's Who, p. 3468. ISBN 9780837970110. Retrieved on 2008-06-06.
^ Scott, Janny (2007-10-30). "Obama's Account of New York Years Often Differs from What Others Say", The New York Times. Retrieved on 2008-04-13. Obama (1995), pp. 133–140; Mendell (2007), pp. 62–63.
^ Secter, Bob; McCormick, John (2007-03-30). "Portrait of a pragmatist", Chicago Tribune, p. 1. Retrieved on 2008-06-06. Archived from the original on 2008-02-09. Lizza, Ryan (2007-03-19). "The Agitator: Barack Obama's Unlikely Political Education" (alternate link), New Republic. Retrieved on 2008-04-13. Obama (1995), pp. 140–295; Mendell (2007), pp. 63–83.
^ Matchan, Linda (1990-02-15). "A Law Review breakthrough" (paid archive), The Boston Globe, p. 29. Retrieved on 2008-06-06. Corr, John (1990-02-27). "From mean streets to hallowed halls" (paid archive), The Philadelphia Inquirer, p. C01. Retrieved on 2008-06-06.
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^ Zeleny, Jeff (2007-10-09). "Obama Proposes Capping Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Making Polluters Pay", The New York Times. Retrieved on 2008-01-14.
^ Barack Obama. "The Blueprint for Change: Barack Obama's plan for America" (PDF). Obama for America. Retrieved on 2008-04-20.
^ Lerner, Michael (2006-07-03). "U.S. Senator Barack Obama Critiques Democrats' Religiophobia", Tikkun Magazine. Retrieved on 2008-01-14. "Sen. Barack Obama: Call to Renewal Keynote Address". Beliefnet (2006-06-28). Retrieved on 2008-01-14.
^ Gibson, Manda (2006-06-28). "At Global AIDS Summit, Churches Challenged to Take the Lead", PurposeDriven.com. Retrieved on 2008-01-14.
^ "Screaming Crowds Welcome U.S. Senator 'Home'", CNN (2006-08-27). Retrieved on 2008-01-14.
^ Obama, Barack (2006-12-01). "Race Against Time—World AIDS Day Speech", Obama U.S. Senate Office. Retrieved on 2008-01-14.
^ "Barack Obama: Faith Has Been 'Hijacked'", Associated Press via CBS News (2007-06-24). Retrieved on 2008-01-14. See also: Brody, David (2007-07-30). "Obama to CBN News: We're No Longer Just a Christian Nation", Christian Broadcasting Network. Retrieved on 2008-01-14.
^ Mayer, William (2004-03-28). "Kerry's Record Rings a Bell", Washington Post. Retrieved on 2008-06-07. "The question of how to measure a senator's or representative's ideology is one that political scientists regularly need to answer. For more than 30 years, the standard method for gauging ideology has been to use the annual ratings of lawmakers' votes by various interest groups, notably the Americans for Democratic Action (ADA) and the American Conservative Union (ACU)."
^ "2005 U.S. Senate Votes". American Conservative Union. Retrieved on 2008-09-20.; "2006 U.S. Senate Votes". American Conservative Union. Retrieved on 2008-09-20.; "2007 U.S. Senate Votes". American Conservative Union. Retrieved on 2008-09-20.
^ "ADA's 2005 Congressional Voting Record". Americans for Democratic Action. Retrieved on 2008-09-20.; "ADA's 2006 Congressional Voting Record". Americans for Democratic Action. Retrieved on 2008-09-20.; "ADA's 2007 Congressional Voting Record". Americans for Democratic Action. Retrieved on 2008-09-20.
^ "When Barry Became Barack", Newsweek (2008-03-31). Retrieved on 2008-11-06.
^ Obama (2006), pp. 327–332. See also: Brown, Sarah (2005-12-07). "Obama '85 Masters Balancing Act", Daily Princetonian. Retrieved on 2008-04-28. Tucker, Eric (2007-03-01). "Family Ties: Brown Coach, Barack Obama", Associated Press, ABC News. Retrieved on 2008-04-28.
^ Obama (2006), p. 329.
^ Fornek, Scott (2007-10-03). "Michelle Obama: 'He Swept Me Off My Feet'", Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved on 2008-04-28.
^ Martin, Jonathan (2008-07-04). "Born on the 4th of July". The Politico. Retrieved on 2008-07-10.
^ Obama (1995), p. 440, and Obama (2006), pp. 339–340. See also: "Election 2008 Information Center: Barack Obama". Gannett News Service. Retrieved on 2008-04-28.
^ "Obama: I trusted Rezko" (2008-03-15).
^ Zeleny, Jeff (2005-12-24). "The First Time Around: Sen. Obama's Freshman Year", Chicago Tribune. Retrieved on 2008-04-28.
^ "Rezko found guilty in corruption case", The Associated Press, MSNBC.com (2008-06-04). Retrieved on 2008-06-24.
^ Slevin, Peter (2006-12-17). "Obama Says He Regrets Land Deal With Fundraiser", The Washington Post. Retrieved on 2008-06-10.
^ "Obama's Money", CNNMoney.com (2007-12-07). Retrieved on 2008-04-28. See also: Goldfarb, Zachary A (2007-03-24). "Measuring Wealth of the '08 Candidates", The Washington Post. Retrieved on 2008-04-28.
^ Zeleny, Jeff (2008-04-17). "Book Sales Lifted Obamas' Income in 2007 to a Total of $4.2 Million", The New York Times. Retrieved on 2008-04-28.
^ "Senator Barack Obama Visit to CJTF-HOA and Camp Lemonier: August 31—September 1, 2006" (video), Combined Joint Task Force—Horn of Africa, YouTube (2007-02-06). Retrieved on 2008-04-28.
^ "Keeping Hope Alive: Barack Obama Puts Family First". The Oprah Winfrey Show (2006-10-18). Retrieved on 2008-06-24.
^ Fornek, Scott (2007-09-09). "Half Siblings: 'A Complicated Family'", Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved on 2008-06-24. See also: "Interactive Family Tree". Chicago Sun-Times (2007-09-09). Retrieved on 2008-06-24.
^ Fornek, Scott (2007-09-09). "Madelyn Payne Dunham: 'A Trailblazer'", Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved on 2008-06-24.
^ "Obama's grandmother dies after battle with cancer", CNN (2008-11-03). Retrieved on 2008-11-04.
^ 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; Harry Merritt (2007-03-02). "A New Twist to an Intriguing Family History", Baltimore Sun. Retrieved on 2008-06-24. Jordan, Mary (2007-05-13). "Tiny Irish Village Is Latest Place to Claim Obama as Its Own", The Washington Post. Retrieved on 2008-06-24. "Obama's Family Tree Has a Few Surprises", Associated Press, CBS 2 (Chicago) (2007-09-08). Retrieved on 2008-06-24.
^ Kantor, Jodi (2007-06-01). "One Place Where Obama Goes Elbow to Elbow", The New York Times. Retrieved on 2008-04-28. See also: "The Love of the Game" (video), HBO: Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel, YouTube (BarackObama.com) (2008-04-15). Retrieved on 2008-04-28.
^ Parsons, Christi (2007-02-06). "Obama Launches an '07 Campaign—To Quit Smoking", Chicago Tribune. Retrieved on 2008-04-28. Archived from the original on 2008-02-16.
^ Obama (2006), pp. 202–208. Portions excerpted in: Obama, Barack (2006-10-23). "My Spiritual Journey", Time. Retrieved on 2008-04-28.
^ Obama, Barack (2006-06-28). "'Call to Renewal' Keynote Address". Barack Obama: U.S. Senator for Illinois (website). Retrieved on 2008-06-16.
^ Jodi Kantor (April 30, 2007). "Barack Obama's search for faith", International Herald Tribune. April 30, 2007
^ Barack Obama (Oct 16, 2006). "My Spiritual Journey", Time magazine.
^ Wallace-Wells, Benjamin (November 2004). "The Great Black Hope: What's Riding on Barack Obama?", Washington Monthly. Retrieved on 2008-04-07. See also: Scott, Janny (2007-12-28). "A Member of a New Generation, Obama Walks a Fine Line", International Herald Tribune. Retrieved on 2008-04-07.
^ Payne, Les (2007-08-19). "In One Country, a Dual Audience" (paid archive), Newsday. Retrieved on 2008-04-07.
^ Dorning, Mike (2007-10-04). "Obama Reaches Across Decades to JFK" (paid archive), Chicago Tribune. Retrieved on 2008-04-07. See also: Harnden, Toby (2007-10-15). "Barack Obama is JFK Heir, Says Kennedy Aide", Daily Telegraph. Retrieved on 2008-04-07.
^ The Root; USA Today
^ World wants Obama as president: poll
^ "Obama to visit nuclear, biological weapons destruction facilities in former Soviet Union" - Senate.gov
^ Quel giorno di tre anni fa a Washington Barack mi raccontò la sua speranzaRome Mayor's Leadership Bid May Lead to Early Italian Elections; VELTRONI A NEW YORK - Il politico prevale sull' amministratore; Libreria Rizzoli Galleria
^ "Sarkozy, Obama and McCain" - The Economist
^ Morris, Chris (2006-09-06). "U2 goes 5-for-5 at Grammys", The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved on 2008-09-20.
^ Associated Press (2008-02-10). "Obama beats ex-presidents for audiobook Grammy", Toronto Star. Retrieved on 2008-02-10.
^ Goodman, Dead (2008-02-10). "Obama or Clinton? Grammys go for Obama", Reuters. Retrieved on 2008-11-05. "Obama on Sunday won the spoken word Grammy for the audiobook version of his blockbuster tome The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream. It marked his second statuette, following a win in 2006 for Dreams From My Father."

References
Obama, Barack (1998) Public policy in the 21st century. Loyola University of Chicago. Center for Instructional Design.; VHS Video
Obama, Barack (2004). Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance. Times Books. ISBN 1-4000-8277-3.
Obama, Barack (2005) EBONY'S 60th Anniversary - The Political Movement In Black America. Chicago, Johnson Pub. Co., etc., Ebony. 61, no. 1, (2005): 116
Obama, Barack (2005) Bound to the Word - Guardians of truth and knowledge, librarians must be thanked for their role as champions of privacy, literacy, independent thinking, and, most of all, reading. American libraries. 36, no. 7, (2005): 48, Chicago, American Library Association.
Obama, Barack (2006). The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream. Crown Publishing Group. ISBN 0-307-23769-9.
Obama, Barack (2006) It takes a nation : how strangers became family in the wake of Hurricane Katrina : the story of MoveOn.org Civic Action's HurricaneHousing.org by Laura Dawn; Barack Obama; San Rafael, CA : Earth Aware, ISBN: 1932771867 9781932771862
Obama, Barack (2006) Lobbying reform : congressional ethics in the wake of scandal : does the Legislative Transparency and Accountability Act provide for sufficient reforms? by Trent Lott; Barack Obama; Congressional Digest Corporation.; et al, Bethesda, MD : Congressional Digest Corp., OCLC: 84912539
Obama, Barack (2007) Barack Obama in his own words Ed. Lisa Rogak, New York : Carroll & Graf, 2007. ISBN: 9780786720576 0786720573
Obama, Barack (2008, contr.) in Health care by David M Haugen; Detroit : Greenhaven Press/Gale; ISBN: 9780737740066; 073774006X; 9780737740073; 0737740078
Obama, Barack (2008) Affordable Health Care for All Americans: The Obama-Biden Plan 13. Affordable Health Care for All Americans: The Obama-Biden Plan JAMA : the journal of the American Medical Association. 300, no. 16, (2008): 1927, Chicago : American Medical Association, 1960-
Obama, Barack (2008) An American story : the speeches of Barack Obama : a primer by Barack Obama and David Olive; Toronto: ECW Press, ISBN: 9781550228649; 1550228641
Obama, Barack (2008) Change we can believe in : Barack Obama's plan to renew America's promise, New York : Three Rivers Press, ISBN: 9780307460455 : 0307460452 : 9780739383223 0739383221
Obama, Barack (2008) Barack Obama's speech on race : "A more perfect union". BN Publishing, ISBN: 9650060448 9789650060442
Obama, Barack (2008) An analysis of the Obama health care proposal by John Holahan; Linda Blumberg; Barack Obama; Health Policy Center (Urban Institute, Washington), D.C. : Urban Institute Health Policy Center, OCLC: 262633852
Obama, Barack (2008) Renewing American leadership Foreign Affairs, New York/N.Y.(0015-7120), 86 (Juli-August 2007) 4 S. 2-16 Ill.
Mendell, David (2007). Obama: From Promise to Power. Amistad/HarperCollins. ISBN 0-06-085820-6.

Further reading
Barack Obama v • d • e
Early life and career · (Family · Memoir)
Illinois Senate career
U.S. Senate career
Presidential primaries
Obama–Biden 2008
Presidential transition
Policy positions · Public image
Listen to this article (info/dl)

This audio file was created from a revision dated 2008-09-03, and does not reflect subsequent edits to the article. (Audio help)
More spoken articlesCurry, Jessica. "Barack Obama: Under the Lights", Chicago Life, Fall 2004. Retrieved on 2008-01-14.
Graff, Garrett. "The Legend of Barack Obama", Washingtonian, November 1, 2006. Retrieved on 2008-01-14.
Lizza, Ryan. "Above the Fray", GQ, September 2007. Retrieved on 2008-01-14.
Koltun, Dave (2005) "The 2004 Illinois Senate Race: Obama Wins Open Seat and Becomes National Political “Star”" in "The Road to Congress 2004" Editors: Sunil Ahuja (Youngstown State University) and Robert Dewhirst (Northeast Missouri State University), Nova Science Publishers, Haupauge, New York, Binding: Hardcover Pub. Date: 2005, ISBN: 1-59454-360-7
MacFarquhar, Larissa. "The Conciliator: Where is Barack Obama Coming From?", New Yorker, May 7, 2007. Retrieved on 2008-01-14.
Mundy, Liza. "A Series of Fortunate Events", The Washington Post Magazine, August 12, 2007. Retrieved on 2008-01-14.
Wallace-Wells, Ben. "Destiny's Child", Rolling Stone, February 7, 2007. Retrieved on 2008-01-14.
Zutter, Hank De. "What Makes Obama Run?", Chicago Reader, December 8, 1995. Retrieved on 2008-01-14.

External links
Find more information on Barack Obama in Wikipedia's sister projects
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Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
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Campaign finance reports and data at the Federal Election Commission
Campaign contributions at OpenSecrets.org
Biography, voting record, and interest group ratings at Project Vote Smart
Issue positions and quotes at On The Issues
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Congressional profile at GovTrack.us
Site directory
Barack Obama at the Open Directory Project
Works by or about Barack Obama in libraries (WorldCat catalog)
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US election results map from BBC News
In pictures: Election result reaction from BBC News
In quotes: US election reaction from BBC News
FACTBOX: Barack Obama, Democratic President-elect (Reuters, November 5, 2008)
Illinois Senate
Preceded by
Alice Palmer Illinois State Senator from 13th district
1997 – 2004 Succeeded by
Kwame Raoul
United States Senate
Preceded by
Peter Fitzgerald United States Senator (Class 3) from Illinois
2005 – 2009
Served alongside: Dick Durbin Succeeded by
TBA
Political offices
Preceded by
George F. Allen
R-Virginia Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on European Affairs
2007 – present Succeeded by
TBA
Preceded by
Harold Ford, Jr. Keynote Speaker of the Democratic National Convention
2004 Succeeded by
Mark Warner
Preceded by
Carol Moseley Braun Democratic Party nominee for Senator from Illinois
(Class 3)
2004 Most recent
Preceded by
John Kerry Democratic Party presidential nominee
2008 Most recent
Order of precedence in the United States of America
Preceded by
Mel Martinez
R-Florida United States Senators by seniority
86th Succeeded by
Ken Salazar
D-Colorado
[show]v • d • ePresidents of the United States

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[show]v • d • eUnited States presidential election, 2008

United States elections, 2008 · Candidates (Comparison) · Debates · Congressional support · Fundraising · Ballot access · Timeline · Super Tuesday · Potomac primary · Super Tuesday II · Straw polls · General polls · Statewide general polls

Democratic Party
Convention · Straw polls · Primary polls ·
General polls · Debates · Primaries ·
Primary results · Superdelegates Nominee: Barack Obama (campaign · positions)
VP nominee: Joe Biden (positions)
Former candidates: Evan Bayh · Joe Biden (campaign) · Hillary Rodham Clinton (campaign) · Chris Dodd (campaign) · John Edwards (campaign) · Mike Gravel (campaign) · Dennis Kucinich (campaign) · Dal LaMagna · Bill Richardson (campaign) · Tom Vilsack (campaign)

Republican Party
Convention · Straw polls · Primary polls ·
General polls · Debates · Primaries ·
Primary results Nominee: John McCain (campaign · positions)
VP nominee: Sarah Palin (positions)
Former candidates: Sam Brownback · Hugh Cort · John Cox · Dan Gilbert · Jim Gilmore (campaign) · Rudy Giuliani (campaign) · Mike Huckabee (campaign) · Duncan Hunter (campaign) · Alan Keyes (campaign) · Ray McKinney · Ron Paul (campaign) · Mitt Romney (campaign) · Tom Tancredo (campaign) · Fred Thompson (campaign) · Tommy Thompson (campaign)

Constitution Party
Convention Nominee: Chuck Baldwin (campaign)/Darrell Castle
Former candidates: Daniel Imperato · Alan Keyes (campaign)

Green Party
Convention Nominee: Cynthia McKinney (campaign · positions)/Rosa Clemente
Former candidates: Elaine Brown · Jesse Johnson · Kent Mesplay · Kat Swift

Libertarian Party
Convention Nominee: Bob Barr (campaign · positions)/Wayne Allyn Root
Former candidates: Mike Gravel (campaign) · Daniel Imperato · Steve Kubby · George Phillies · Wayne Allyn Root · Mary Ruwart · Doug Stanhope

Minor parties America's Independent Party: Alan Keyes (campaign)/Brian Rohrbough · Boston Tea Party: Charles Jay/Thomas L. Knapp · New American Independent Party: Frank McEnulty · Objectivist Party · Prohibition Party: Gene Amondson/Leroy Pletten · Party for Socialism and Liberation: Gloria La Riva/Eugene Puryear · Reform Party: Ted Weill/Frank McEnulty · Socialist Party: Brian Moore/Stewart Alexander · Socialist Workers Party: Róger Calero/Alyson Kennedy

Independent John Taylor Bowles · Ralph Nader (campaign)/Matt Gonzalez · Jonathon Sharkey

Draft movements Democratic Party: Al Gore · Mark Warner (movement) · Republican Party: Newt Gingrich · Condoleezza Rice (movement) · Independent: Michael Bloomberg (movement)

Those listed following the "/" are the party's vice-presidential nominee
Other 2008 elections: House · Senate · Gubernatorial

[show]v • d • eUnited States Democratic Party Presidential Nominees

Andrew Jackson · Martin Van Buren · James K. Polk · Lewis Cass · Franklin Pierce · James Buchanan · Stephen A. Douglas/John C. Breckinridge (SD) · George B. McClellan · Horatio Seymour · Horace Greeley · Samuel J. Tilden · Winfield Scott Hancock · Grover Cleveland · William Jennings Bryan · Alton B. Parker · William Jennings Bryan · Woodrow Wilson · James M. Cox · John W. Davis · Al Smith · Franklin D. Roosevelt · Harry S. Truman · Adlai Stevenson · John F. Kennedy · Lyndon B. Johnson · Hubert Humphrey · George McGovern · Jimmy Carter · Walter Mondale · Michael Dukakis · Bill Clinton · Al Gore · John Kerry · Barack Obama

[show]v • d • eBarack Obama

Political activities 2004 Democratic National Convention · Illinois Senate career · U.S. Senate election in Illinois, 2004 · U.S. Senate career · Presidential primary campaign, 2008 · Obama–Biden 2008 · Electoral history · Political positions · Presidential transition

Books authored Dreams from My Father · The Audacity of Hope

Life Early life and career · Public image

Family Family tree · Michelle Obama · Barack Obama, Sr. · Ann Dunham (mother) · Lolo Soetoro (stepdad) · Maya Soetoro-Ng (sister) ·
Madelyn and Stanley Dunham (grandparents)

Speeches The Audacity of Hope · A More Perfect Union · This is Your Victory

[show]v • d • eIllinois's current delegation to the United States Congress

Senators Dick Durbin (D), Barack Obama (D)

Representative(s) Bobby Rush (D), Jesse Jackson, Jr. (D), Dan Lipinski (D), Luis Gutiérrez (D), Rahm Emanuel (D), Peter Roskam (R), Danny Davis (D), Melissa Bean (D), Jan Schakowsky (D), Mark Kirk (R), Jerry Weller (R), Jerry Costello (D), Judy Biggert (R), Bill Foster (D), Tim Johnson (R), Donald Manzullo (R), Phil Hare (D), Ray LaHood (R), John Shimkus (R)

State delegations Alabama • Alaska • Arizona • Arkansas • California • Colorado • Connecticut • Delaware • Florida • Georgia • Hawaii • Idaho • Illinois • Indiana • Iowa • Kansas • Kentucky • Louisiana • Maine • Maryland • Massachusetts • Michigan • Minnesota • Mississippi • Missouri • Montana • Nebraska • Nevada • New Hampshire • New Jersey • New Mexico • New York • North Carolina • North Dakota • Ohio • Oklahoma • Oregon • Pennsylvania • Rhode Island • South Carolina • South Dakota • Tennessee • Texas • Utah • Vermont • Virginia • Washington • West Virginia • Wisconsin • Wyoming

Non-voting delegations American Samoa • District of Columbia • Guam • Puerto Rico • U.S. Virgin Islands

[show]v • d • eCurrent members of the United States Senate

AL: Shelby (R), Sessions (R)
AK: Stevens (R), Murkowski (R)
AZ: McCain (R), Kyl (R)
AR: Lincoln (D), Pryor (D)
CA: Feinstein (D), Boxer (D)
CO: Allard (R), Salazar (D)
CT: Dodd (D), Lieberman (I)
DE: Biden (D), Carper (D)
FL: Nelson (D), Martinez (R)
GA: Chambliss (R), Isakson (R)
HI: Inouye (D), Akaka (D)
ID: Craig (R), Crapo (R)
IL: Durbin (D), Obama (D)

IN: Lugar (R), Bayh (D)
IA: Grassley (R), Harkin (D)
KS: Brownback (R), Roberts (R)
KY: McConnell (R), Bunning (R)
LA: Landrieu (D), Vitter (R)
ME: Snowe (R), Collins (R)
MD: Mikulski (D), Cardin (D)
MA: Kennedy (D), Kerry (D)
MI: Levin (D), Stabenow (D)
MN: Coleman (R), Klobuchar (D)
MS: Cochran (R), Wicker (R)
MO: Bond (R), McCaskill (D)
MT: Baucus (D), Tester (D)
NE: Hagel (R), Nelson (D)
NV: Reid (D), Ensign (R)
NH: Gregg (R), Sununu (R)
NJ: Lautenberg (D), Menendez (D)
NM: Domenici (R), Bingaman (D)
NY: Schumer (D), Clinton (D)
NC: Dole (R), Burr (R)
ND: Conrad (D), Dorgan (D)
OH: Voinovich (R), Brown (D)
OK: Inhofe (R), Coburn (R)
OR: Wyden (D), Smith (R)
PA: Specter (R), Casey (D)
RI: Reed (D), Whitehouse (D)
SC: Graham (R), DeMint (R)
SD: Johnson (D), Thune (R)
TN: Alexander (R), Corker (R)
TX: Hutchison (R), Cornyn (R)
UT: Hatch (R), Bennett (R)
VT: Leahy (D), Sanders (I)
VA: Warner (R), Webb (D)
WA: Murray (D), Cantwell (D)
WV: Byrd (D), Rockefeller (D)
WI: Kohl (D), Feingold (D)
WY: Enzi (R), Barrasso (R)



Republican (49) • Democratic (49) • Independent (2)

[show]v • d • eUnited States Senators from Illinois

Class 2: Thomas • McLean • Baker • Robinson • McRoberts • Semple • S. Douglas • Browning • Richardson • Yates • Logan • Davis • Cullom • Lewis • McCormick • Deneen • Lewis • Slattery • Brooks • P. Douglas • Percy • Simon • Durbin
Class 3: Edwards • McLean • Kane • Ewing • Young • Breese • Shields • Trumbull • Oglesby • Logan • Farwell • Palmer • Mason • Hopkins • Lorimer • Sherman • McKinley • Glenn • Dieterich • Lucas • Dirksen • Smith • Stevenson III • Dixon • Moseley Braun • Fitzgerald • Obama

[show]v • d • eCurrent elected statewide political officials of Illinois

U.S. Senators Dick Durbin · Barack Obama

State government Rod Blagojevich, Governor · Pat Quinn, Lieutenant Governor · Lisa Madigan, Attorney General · Jesse White, Secretary of State · Daniel Hynes, Comptroller · Alexi Giannoulias, Treasurer

Senate Emil Jones, President · Debbie Halvorson, Majority Leader · Frank Watson, Minority Leader

House Michael Madigan, Speaker · Barbara Flynn Currie, Majority Leader · Tom Cross, Minority Leader

Supreme Court Thomas R. Fitzgerald, Chief Justice · Charles E. Freeman · Robert R. Thomas · Thomas L. Kilbride · Rita B. Garman · Lloyd A. Karmeier · Anne McGlone Burke

[show]v • d • eCabinet of President-elect Barack Obama (2009 – )