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Barack Obama was raised by a single mother and his grandparents.
They didn't have much money, but they taught him values from the Kansas heartland where they grew up. He took out loans to put himself through school. After college, he worked for Christian churches in Chicago, helping communities devastated when steel plants closed. Obama turned down lucrative job offers after law school to return to Chicago, leading a successful voter registration drive. He joined a small law firm, taught constitutional law and, guided by his Christian faith, stayed active in his community. Obama and his wife Michelle are proud parents of two daughters, Sasha and Malia.
Early Years
Barack Obama was born in Hawaii on August 4th, 1961. His father, Barack Obama Sr., was born and raised in a small village in Kenya, where he grew up herding goats with his own father, who was a domestic servant to the British.
Barack's mother, Ann Dunham, grew up in small-town Kansas. Her father worked on oil rigs during the Depression, and then signed up for World War II after Pearl Harbor, where he marched across Europe in Patton's army. Her mother went to work on a bomber assembly line, and after the war, they studied on the G.I. Bill, bought a house through the Federal Housing Program, and moved west to Hawaii.
It was there, at the University of Hawaii, where Barack's parents met. His mother was a student there, and his father had won a scholarship that allowed him to leave Kenya and pursue his dreams in America.
Barack's father eventually returned to Kenya, and Barack grew up with his mother in Hawaii, and for a few years in Indonesia. Later, he moved to New York, where he graduated from Columbia University in 1983.
The College Years
Remembering the values of empathy and service that his mother taught him, Barack put law school and corporate life on hold after college and moved to Chicago in 1985, where he became a community organizer with a church-based group seeking to improve living conditions in poor neighborhoods plagued with crime and high unemployment.
The group had some success, but Barack had come to realize that in order to truly improve the lives of people in that community and other communities, it would take not just a change at the local level, but a change in our laws and in our politics.
He went on to earn his law degree from Harvard in 1991, where he became the first African-American president of the Harvard Law Review. Soon after, he returned to Chicago to practice as a civil rights lawyer and teach constitutional law. Finally, his advocacy work led him to run for the Illinois State Senate, where he served for eight years. In 2004, he became the third African American since Reconstruction to be elected to the U.S. Senate.
Political Career
It has been the rich and varied experiences of Barack Obama's life - growing up in different places with people who had differing ideas - that have animated his political journey. Amid the partisanship and bickering of today's public debate, he still believes in the ability to unite people around a politics of purpose - a politics that puts solving the challenges of everyday Americans ahead of partisan calculation and political gain.
In the Illinois State Senate, this meant working with both Democrats and Republicans to help working families get ahead by creating programs like the state Earned Income Tax Credit, which in three years provided over $100 million in tax cuts to families across the state. He also pushed through an expansion of early childhood education, and after a number of inmates on death row were found innocent, Senator Obama worked with law enforcement officials to require the videotaping of interrogations and confessions in all capital cases.
In the U.S. Senate, he has focused on tackling the challenges of a globalized, 21st century world with fresh thinking and a politics that no longer settles for the lowest common denominator. His first law was passed with Republican Tom Coburn, a measure to rebuild trust in government by allowing every American to go online and see how and where every dime of their tax dollars is spent. He has also been the lead voice in championing ethics reform that would root out Jack Abramoff-style corruption in Congress.
As a member of the Veterans' Affairs Committee, Senator Obama has fought to help Illinois veterans get the disability pay they were promised, while working to prepare the VA for the return of the thousands of veterans who will need care after Iraq and Afghanistan. Recognizing the terrorist threat posed by weapons of mass destruction, he traveled to Russia with Republican Dick Lugar to begin a new generation of non-proliferation efforts designed to find and secure deadly weapons around the world. And knowing the threat we face to our economy and our security from America's addiction to oil, he's working to bring auto companies, unions, farmers, businesses and politicians of both parties together to promote the greater use of alternative fuels and higher fuel standards in our cars.
Whether it's the poverty exposed by Katrina, the genocide in Darfur, or the role of faith in our politics, Barack Obama continues to speak out on the issues that will define America in the 21st century. But above all his accomplishments and experiences, he is most proud and grateful for his family. His wife, Michelle, and his two daughters, Malia, 10, and Sasha, 7, live on Chicago's South Side.
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Joe Biden is a rare mix. A leader who has worked for decades in Washington, but has never lived there. An expert on foreign policy, whose heart and values are firmly rooted in the middle class; one who has stared down dictators, and spoken for America's cops and firefighters. He is uniquely suited to serve as Barack Obama’s partner in the urgent mission to bring about the change America needs to put our country back on track.
Biography
Joseph Robinette Biden Jr., age 65, was born in Scranton, Pennsylvania, on November 20, 1942, to Joseph Sr. and Jean Biden. He was the oldest of four children. In 1953, the Biden family moved from Pennsylvania to Claymont, Delaware. Biden attended parochial school at St. Helena’s School in Wilmington and the Archmere Academy in Claymont. Public service was part of the Biden family, with one of Joe's great grandfathers serving as a Pennsylvania state senator.
After graduating from the University of Delaware in 1965 and from law school at Syracuse University in 1968, Biden moved back to the Wilmington area and set up his own law firm. He practiced law until 1972.
In 1970, Biden – at age 27 – ran for New Castle County Council and won in a Republican district. At age 29, he launched an improbable bid to unseat two-term Republican U.S. Sen. J. Caleb Boggs. With very little help from the state establishment, and with his sister as his campaign manager, Biden defeated Boggs by 3,162 votes.
Just weeks after the election, Biden’s wife, Neilia, and their 1-year-old daughter, Naomi, were killed and their two young sons critically injured in an auto accident. Biden was sworn in at his son's hospital bedside and began commuting to Washington every day by train, a practice he has maintained throughout his career in the Senate.
In 1977, Biden married Jill Jacobs. Jill Biden, who holds a PhD in education, has been an educator for over two decades in Delaware's schools. Currently she is a professor at Delaware Technical Community College.
Senator Biden has three children: Beau, Hunter and Ashley. Beau currently serves as Delaware's Attorney General; a captain in the 261st Signal Brigade of the Delaware National Guard, he will be deployed to Iraq this October. Ashley is a social worker and Hunter is an attorney. Senator Biden also has five grandchildren: Naomi, Finnegan, Roberta Mabel, Natalie, and Robert Hunter.
In 1988, Biden suffered a cranial aneurysm and nearly died. He recovered by early 1989 after two surgeries and has enjoyed good health since then.
In addition to serving as U.S. Senator, Biden has been an adjunct professor at the Widener University School of Law since 1991, where he teaches a seminar on constitutional law.
Key Career Accomplishments
Biden became ranking Democrat on the Foreign Relations Committee in 1997 and served as chairman of the committee from 2001 to 2003 and from January 2007 to the present. He has served as chairman or ranking member of the Judiciary Committee for sixteen years. He is recognized as one of the nation's leading authorities on foreign policy, as well as one of its most influential voices on terrorism, drug policy, crime, and issues important to women. He has been a tireless advocate for working families and has reached across the aisle to work with Republicans on tackling some of the greatest challenges facing Americans.
Like Barack Obama, Biden has been an outspoken critic of Bush’s handling of the war in Iraq.
Biden’s leadership was instrumental in helping to bring stability and peace to the Balkans. In 1999, Biden wrote a resolution endorsing the air war in Kosovo that was passed by the Senate.
Biden is a leader on the congressional effort to end genocide in Darfur.
In the late 1990s, Biden led the effort in the Senate to bring Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic into NATO and to pass the Chemical Weapons Treaty.
Biden has been instrumental in crafting almost every major piece of crime legislation over the past two decades. His Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 put more than 100,000 police officers on America’s streets and has been credited with bringing down crime rates to the lowest in a generation.
In 1996, Biden authored legislation to create a national registry of sex offenders, which tracks people convicted of sex crimes involving violence or committed against minors.
Biden authored and passed the landmark Violence Against Women Act, the strongest legislation to date that criminalizes domestic violence and holds batterers accountable.
Biden was a strong supporter of the Family and Medical Leave Act, cracked down on deadbeat dads, and has been a consistent champion for equal pay.
Biden was one of the first to introduce legislation to address global warming and he co-sponsored the most aggressive piece of climate change legislation in the U.S. Senate.
Biden is a champion on the issue of making college more affordable by using the tax code to reduce costs.
Biden was successful in passing a provision that prevents budget cuts to military facilities while the nation is at war, one of his key priorities, ensuring that all veterans have top-notch medical treatment in a fully-funded VA health care system.
Senator Biden has a proven record of bringing people together to get things done. From global warming to combating violence against women to confronting the challenges of the dangerous world in which we live, Joe Biden has fought every day over the course of his life in public service to improve the lives of middle class families.
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When people ask Michelle Obama to describe herself, she doesn't hesitate. First and foremost, she is Malia and Sasha's mom.
But before she was a mother - or a wife, lawyer, or public servant - she was Fraser and Marian Robinson's daughter.
The Robinsons lived on the South Side of Chicago, on the top floor of a brick bungalow. Fraser was a pump operator for the Chicago water department. He was a hero to Michelle and her older brother Craig: even though he had multiple sclerosis, he hardly ever missed a day of work. Marian stayed home to raise Michelle and Craig, skillfully managing a busy household filled with love, laughter, and important life lessons. Fraser and Marian valued hard work, independence, and honesty. Today, their children point to their parents as their greatest teachers.
Michelle attended Chicago public schools, then Princeton. She studied sociology and African American studies, graduated in the class of 1985, and earned admission to Harvard Law School. When she returned to Chicago in 1988, she joined the law firm Sidley & Austin.
After a few years, Michelle realized that corporate law was not her calling. So she left to give back to the city she loves and to help others serve their communities. She worked for City Hall, becoming the assistant commissioner of planning and development. Then she became the founding executive director of the Chicago chapter of Public Allies, an AmeriCorps program that prepares young people for public service. Today, more than 350 young leaders have graduated from Public Allies Chicago.
Michelle got one great thing out of working for a corporate law firm-that's where she met her husband, Barack. They were married in 1992. Today, they have two girls-Malia, 10, and Sasha, 7. Like their mom, both girls were born on the South Side of Chicago.
Since 1996, Michelle has worked for the University of Chicago. As associate dean of student services, she developed the university's first community service program. Later, she became the vice president of community and external affairs for the University of Chicago Medical Center. Under Michelle's leadership, volunteering skyrocketed, both in the hospital and the community. Hospital employees serving in the community increased nearly fivefold, while community members volunteering in the hospital nearly quadrupled.
Since Barack began his campaign in early 2007, Michelle has met thousands of Americans, hearing their concerns and hopes for the future. As someone who knows the challenge of balancing work and family, Michelle has held roundtables with working women to hear about their struggle to do it all, particularly in a failing economy. In these discussions, Michelle heard the unique stories of military spouses, who work hard to keep their families together while their loved ones are away.
"We held a roundtable for military spouses at Fort Bragg," Michelle says. "It felt like the first time that many of these women had even been asked how they were doing. The tears and the stories went on and on. So we had another roundtable, and then another one."
If Barack is honored with the privilege of serving the United States as president, Michelle looks forward to continuing her work on the issues close to her heart-supporting military families, helping working women balance work and family, and encouraging national service.
"My first priority will always be to make sure that our girls are healthy and grounded," she says. "Then I want to help other families get the support they need, not just to survive, but to thrive.
"Policies that support families aren't political issues. They're personal. They're the causes I carry with me every single day."
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Senator Clinton made history in her historic campaign—not just because she broke barriers, but because she inspired millions of Americans with her strength, her courage, and her commitment to causes like universal health care that make a difference in the lives of hardworking Americans.
It's up to us now to come together to take on John McCain.
Today was a good day. At four o'clock this morning our time the polls closed on the west coast of America and exit polls led to the networks calling the Presidency for Obama. What's phenomenal about Obama is that he came from practically nowhere two years ago, and despite running against established rivals - first Hillary Clinton and John Edwards, and then John McCain - managed to not just take the White House, but surfed into it on a landslide. Obviously psephology is phenomenally complex, but one thing is clear: Obama used technology to motivate his base and get the vote out. But just how did he do it? Here are five uses of technology that helped win it. Skip related content
Related photos / videos Enlarge photo 1) Facebook - Obama made a splash initially by appealing to young voters, who were typically apathetic good-for-nothings. Unlike his rivals, Obama was 'down wid da kidz' from the beginning, becoming one of the most popular celebrities on Facebook, with over 2.5m supporters. This provides Obama with a direct line to them - his campaign had been sending out daily messages to everyone's Facebook to get the message out and motivate supporters.
2) Twitter/UStream - Okay, so this may not have been as pivotal as Facebook, but @barackobama's 120,000-odd followers got regular updates on where he was and were regularly provided with links to watch rallies being streamed live over the internet.
3) YouTube - Obama's base could be described as the "YouTube generation", and thanks to the magic of modern technology, all of the major events from the campaign can be found on YouTube (apart from Daily Show and Colbert Report appearances, grumble, grumble). Obama's big speech on race has been viewed over 5 million times on the site, which is more than the combined cable news audience who watched it. Similarly, YouTube has become a campaigning tool for more grass roots support, with one music video putting an Obama speech to music has had over 11 million views. And these are just two small examples.
4) Joe Biden text - Rather than announce his running mate in the traditional way, Obama tried to eschew the old media route and instead urged people to sign up for a text alert to be the "first to know" who Obama has picked. Millions of people signed up to receive this. Admittedly, when Obama finally picked Biden it was leaked to the press early resulting in the need to bulk-text millions of Americans in the early hours of the morning, but I doubt the Obama campaign were complaining about all of those phone numbers of voters they'd harvested.
5) Not being technologically inept - Poor old John McCain is rubbish at using computers and technology, whereas Obama was pictured many times tapping away on his Blackberry - a sure sign that a candidate is modern and has his finger on the pulse. Did Americans really want a man with his finger on the nuclear button if he didn't really know how to work the machine?
