Spring Break
Comparing the candidates: Obama vs. Romney
Part 2 of the WC's weekly coverage of 2008 presidential hopefuls
Jason Nevel
Issue date: 10/10/07 Section: News
- Page 1 of 1
America can be a funny place.
It's the land of the free, home of the brave and dwelling spot of the biracial, skinny kid with an unusual name who grew up and took the nation by storm - United States Senator and 2008 presidential candidate Barack Hussein Obama.
At the 2004 Democratic National Convention, Obama was selected as the keynote speaker despite only being a first-term Illinois State Senator. In his speech, Obama outlined to thousands of Democrats his own family's pursuit of the American dream and his belief in a "generous America."
"My parents shared not only an improbable love (his father was Kenyan, his mother from Wichita, Kan.), they shared an abiding faith in the possibilities of this nation," Obama said. "They would give me an African name, Barack, or 'blessed,' believing that in a tolerant America your name is no barrier to success. They imagined me going to the best schools in the land, even though they weren't rich, because in a generous America you don't have to be rich to achieve your potential."
And that is exactly what the kid with the big ears - so his wife Michelle says - has done.
In the 2008 election, Obama is campaigning on the idea of changing the status quo in Washington, D.C., strengthening U.S. diplomatic ties with foreign nations and reinstating trust in American government.
Obama's other platform is his opposition to the War in Iraq from the get-go. However, critics to Obama note that he was not a U.S. Senator when President George W. Bush declared war, and since he arrived in Washington, his voting record has fallen in line with everyone else's.
Obama's inkling for politics began at Harvard University where he was elected the first black president of the Harvard Law Review. After completion of law school, Obama laid the framework for what was to be a storybook ascent up the political ladder.
Obama returned to Chicago as a community organizer and turned his name into a serious one in the Democratic political scene. He orchestrated an aggressive voter turnout effort that registered more than 100,000 people.
In 2004, Obama had a landslide victory over Republican Alan Keyes for a seat in the U.S. Senate. He declared his presidential candidacy in Springfield, Ill., in February and since then has raised nearly $60 million, which has made his campaign no laughing matter.
It's the land of the free, home of the brave and dwelling spot of the biracial, skinny kid with an unusual name who grew up and took the nation by storm - United States Senator and 2008 presidential candidate Barack Hussein Obama.
At the 2004 Democratic National Convention, Obama was selected as the keynote speaker despite only being a first-term Illinois State Senator. In his speech, Obama outlined to thousands of Democrats his own family's pursuit of the American dream and his belief in a "generous America."
"My parents shared not only an improbable love (his father was Kenyan, his mother from Wichita, Kan.), they shared an abiding faith in the possibilities of this nation," Obama said. "They would give me an African name, Barack, or 'blessed,' believing that in a tolerant America your name is no barrier to success. They imagined me going to the best schools in the land, even though they weren't rich, because in a generous America you don't have to be rich to achieve your potential."
And that is exactly what the kid with the big ears - so his wife Michelle says - has done.
In the 2008 election, Obama is campaigning on the idea of changing the status quo in Washington, D.C., strengthening U.S. diplomatic ties with foreign nations and reinstating trust in American government.
Obama's other platform is his opposition to the War in Iraq from the get-go. However, critics to Obama note that he was not a U.S. Senator when President George W. Bush declared war, and since he arrived in Washington, his voting record has fallen in line with everyone else's.
Obama's inkling for politics began at Harvard University where he was elected the first black president of the Harvard Law Review. After completion of law school, Obama laid the framework for what was to be a storybook ascent up the political ladder.
Obama returned to Chicago as a community organizer and turned his name into a serious one in the Democratic political scene. He orchestrated an aggressive voter turnout effort that registered more than 100,000 people.
In 2004, Obama had a landslide victory over Republican Alan Keyes for a seat in the U.S. Senate. He declared his presidential candidacy in Springfield, Ill., in February and since then has raised nearly $60 million, which has made his campaign no laughing matter.
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