Barack Obama

Barack Hussein Obama, Jr. (born August 4, 1961) is a U.S. Senator from Illinois. He is a member of the Democratic Party. He received international media coverage for his keynote address at the 2004 Democratic National Convention, delivered while he was still an Illinois state senator.

Politics

Illinois General Assembly

In 1996, Obama was elected to the Illinois State Senate from the south side neighborhood of Hyde Park, in Chicago. He served as chairman of the Public Health and Welfare Committee when the Democrats regained control of the chamber. The Chicago Tribune called him "one of the General Assembly's most impressive members."

Related Topics:
1996 - Illinois State Senate - Hyde Park - Chicago Tribune

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Regarded as a staunch liberal during his tenure in the legislature, he helped to author a state Earned Income Tax Credit which provided benefits to the working poor. He also worked for legislation that would cover residents who could not afford health insurance. Speaking up for leading gay and lesbian advocacy groups, he successfully helped pass bills to increase funding for AIDS prevention and care programs.

Related Topics:
Liberal - Earned Income Tax Credit - Gay - Lesbian - AIDS

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In 2000, he ran unsuccessfully in the Democratic primary for Illinois' 1st Congressional district against incumbent Representative Bobby Rush. Rush received 61% of the vote, while Obama received 30%. http://www.fec.gov/pubrec/fe2000/ilh.htm

Related Topics:
2000 - Primary - Congressional district - Representative - Bobby Rush

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After the loss, Obama rededicated his efforts to the state Senate. He authored one of the most progressive death penalty reform laws in the nation, under the guidance of former U.S. Senator Paul Simon. He also pushed through legislation that would force insurance companies to cover routine mammograms.

Related Topics:
Paul Simon - Mammograms

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United States Senate campaign

In 2004, Obama decided to run for the U.S. Senate seat to be vacated by Sen. Peter Fitzgerald, who chose not to run for re-election. In the Democratic primary, he trailed business tycoon Blair Hull and Illinois Comptroller Dan Hynes. However, Hull was soon embroiled by allegations of domestic abuse. As Obama's name recognition rose, voters took a liking to the bright, charismatic senator. He won the endorsements of four Illinois congressmen, as well as those of many progressive leaders such as former DNC chairman David Wilhelm.

Related Topics:
2004 - Peter Fitzgerald - Blair Hull - Dan Hynes - Abuse - David Wilhelm

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He won decisively in the March primary, dispatching the other six candidates easily, and winning more than 50 percent of the vote. His primary political consultant and message strategist was David Axelrod, whose firm, AKP Message and Media, produced the campaign's television ads.

Related Topics:
Political consultant - David Axelrod - AKP Message and Media

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Entering the U.S. Senate campaign, Obama had become a national Democratic star. He squared off against former Goldman Sachs partner and teacher Jack Ryan, the winner of the Republican primary. Ryan trailed Obama in the polls, and Obama opened up a twenty point lead after the media reported that Ryan had assigned an aide to stalk Obama. In addition, during the campaign, a California court ruling opened custody files from Ryan's divorce from actress Jeri Ryan, in which she alleged that he had brought her without her knowledge to sex clubs, intending for her to have sex with him in public. The files, which were part of the custody proceedings regarding the Ryans' young son, were opened as a result of a lawsuit brought by the Chicago Tribune and WLS-TV, a local ABC affiliate. Ryan had insisted that there was nothing damaging in the files, and many Republican leaders openly questioned Ryan's integrity following the release. Ryan was forced to leave the race on June 25, 2004, leaving Obama without an opponent.

Related Topics:
Goldman Sachs - Jack Ryan - Republican - California - Jeri Ryan - Chicago Tribune - WLS-TV - ABC - June 25 - 2004

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Former Chicago Bears coach Mike Ditka had considered running as a Republican to replace Ryan, but ultimately opted not to, citing family and business considerations. After many more candidates turned down the Illinois GOP, Republican state Chairwoman Judy Baar Topinka announced two possible replacements: Alan Keyes, a former ambassador residing in Maryland, and Andrea Barthwell, a DEA official. After much deliberation, Keyes was chosen, and he officially accepted the nomination on August 8. He had gained much attention as a conservative firebrand in his unsuccessful presidential campaigns in 1996 and 2000. The nomination was widely viewed as a victory for the more conservative wing of the party, and a loss for the more moderate Topinka.

Related Topics:
Chicago Bears - Mike Ditka - Judy Baar Topinka - Alan Keyes - Andrea Barthwell - August 8

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The selection of Keyes backfired; his extreme-right positions ended up driving many Republicans to abstain or support Obama. Some pundits suggested that the Republicans would have done better with either incumbent Senator Fitzgerald, or primary runner-up James Oberweis; however Fitzgerald had angered the state Republican leadership which led to him declining to run for re-election, while Oberweis's attacks on illegal immigration caused him to be rejected despite his willingness to spend his personal fortune. Others suggested that the state Republican party would even save money by letting Obama be acclaimed, since he was so far ahead in polls at a late stage in the campaign and none of the possible candidates mentioned had a chance of catching him.

Related Topics:
Senator Fitzgerald - James Oberweis

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Keyes, who is an African American and a conservative Republican, had an uphill battle, as Obama had high popularity across the state and Keyes had no ties to Illinois politics. During the time when he had no opponent, Obama campaigned across more conservative downstate areas that ordinarily served as the base for the Republican nominee. A Marylander, Keyes had established legal residency in Illinois with the nomination, the only requirement to run for office. The Chicago Tribune sarcastically greeted Keyes by editorializing: "Mr. Keyes may have noticed a large body of water as he flew into O'Hare. That is called Lake Michigan." http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/chi-0408060313aug06,1,4590778.story

Related Topics:
Conservative - Base - Chicago Tribune - O'Hare - Lake Michigan

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Keyes's previous comments about U.S. Senator and former First Lady Hillary Clinton's run for Senate in New York, ("I deeply resent the destruction of federalism represented by Hillary Clinton's willingness to go into a state she doesn't even live in and pretend to represent people there, so I certainly wouldn't imitate it,") led many to call Keyes hypocritical. Keyes often rebutted this by pointing out that he was invited to run for the position in Illinois, whereas he claimed Clinton was not.

Related Topics:
Hillary Clinton - New York - Federalism

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Overall, there was a stark contrast in the campaigns of both opponents. Obama put on one of the most successful Senate campaigns of the 2004 election and was so far ahead in polls that he was soon going out of Illinois to support other Democratic candidates, notably in Keyes' former home of Maryland. Keyes had further alienated many in his own party with his extreme positions, and other prominent Republican politicians in Illinois quickly distanced themselves from him. After a campaign in which Keyes called Obama's position on abortion "the slave-holder's position", accused gays and lesbians of being "selfish hedonists", and also claimed that Jesus would not vote for Obama, Obama won handily in the general election, receiving 70% of the popular vote to Keyes' 27%.

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Keynote address

Obama was chosen to deliver a keynote address at the 2004 Democratic National Convention in Boston, Massachusetts, and became the third African-American to do so. (The first was Barbara Jordan, at the 1976 Democratic National Convention, and the second was Harold Ford, Jr. at the 2000 Democratic National Convention.)

Related Topics:
2004 Democratic National Convention - Boston, Massachusetts - African-American - Barbara Jordan - 1976 Democratic National Convention - Harold Ford, Jr. - 2000 Democratic National Convention

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His speech outlined his own family's pursuit of the American Dream, and his belief in a 'generous America'. His maternal grandfather, after serving in World War II, was the beneficiary of the New Deal's FHA and GI Bill and had high hopes for their daughter, because, as Obama said, "in a generous America you don't have to be rich to achieve your potential". But he charged that "we have more work to do" for people who are not able to realize the American Dream, maintaining that self responsibility is an important component and people "don't expect government to solve all their problems".

Related Topics:
American Dream - World War II - New Deal - FHA - GI Bill

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He criticized the Bush administration for not supporting troops in Iraq. He spoke of an enlisted Marine, Cpl. Seamus Ahern from East Moline, asking, "Are we serving Seamus as well as he was serving us?" He continued:

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

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Finally he spoke for national unity: "Well, I say to them tonight, there's not a liberal America and a conservative America; there's the United States of America." Perhaps the most often quoted sound bite followed: "We worship an awesome God in the Blue States, and we don't like federal agents poking around in our libraries in the Red States. We coach Little League in the Blue States, and yes, we've got some gay friends in the Red States. There are patriots who opposed the war in Iraq, and there are patriots who supported the war in Iraq."

Related Topics:
Blue States

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The address was generally regarded as a great success, thrusting Obama into the national spotlight (similar to New York Governor Mario Cuomo's address at the 1984 DNC).

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Other projects

In December 2004, Obama landed a $1.9 million deal for 3 books. The first is to be released in 2006, and will discuss his political convictions. The second is a children's book to be co-written with his wife Michelle and their two young daughters (profits will go to charity). The content of the third book has not been determined yet.

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His 1995 autobiography Dreams From My Father was re-released in 2004 with a few new features. The book has been on The New York Times non-fiction best seller list for more than forty weeks.

Related Topics:
1995 - The New York Times

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