Obama Speech
Barack Hussein Obama was born in Honolulu, Hawaii, on August 4, 1961 to an American mother and a Kenyan father. After his mother remarried to an Indonesian man, Obama spent much of his childhood in Indonesia before going back to Hawaii for a better education.
Due largely in part to his charisma and passionate rhetoric, he went on to become the Democratic nominee, and, in November of 2008, he defeated Republican John McCain to win the election for the 44th President of the United States— the first African American ever to do so.
His work in law and the community led him to run as a Democrat for Illinois State Senate, and he won the election in 1996. As a state Senator, Obama worked on legislation to broaden educational programs and health care for the poor, and also helped spearhead a bill requiring that interrogations and confessions be taped in all capital cases.
During his final months as president, he called for unity and a peaceful transition of power during unexpected win of the contentious Republican nominee, Donald Trump. Like every president, Obama was controversial, but, regardless of personal views on his policies, the ideologies which he held dear— that of helping the least of these, of children receiving quality education, of minorities being treated equally —, his admiration for American principles, and his belief in the American people is something every American should relate to.
As the 44th president of the United States, Barack Obama made history by being the first African-American president. He served two terms as president, from 2009 to 2017, and his passion for civil rights, healthcare, and the lower and middle classes of America is shown through his early life, career, and presidency.
He also published The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream in 2006, in which he talked about his hopes for America in the future and the need for bipartisanship between Democrats and Republicans. TALK ABOUT BOOK FOR A SECOND. Obama announced his candidacy for the 2008 Democratic presidential nomination in 2007, advocating for welfare reform, a withdrawal from the Iraq war, and more government intervention to end the nationwide recession.
In 1988, he entered Harvard Law School and met young lawyer Michelle Robinson, and the two began dating. He graduated from Harvard Law in 1991 and returned to Chicago to become a civil rights lawyer and to teach constitutional law part-time. In 1992, he and Michelle got married, and later had two daughters, Malia and Sasha
In 2012, Obama announced that Osama bin Laden, leader of the terrorist group behind the 9/11 attacks, was killed by U.S. special forces, and this accomplishment helped him to be re-elected that same year. In his second term, due to an influx of mass shootings, the President attempted to pass stricter gun-control laws and regulations, which ultimately failed to pass Congress. In his last years as president, he continued attacks against ISIS, normalized relations with Cuba after over fifty years of hostility, faced extreme partisan fighting, rising racial tensions, and the monumental Supreme Court decision to legalize same-sex marriage, which he praised for upholding the American ideal of equality.
SHOW PICTURE After graduating high school, he went to Columbia University in New York City, and during this time, he often struggled with his racial and cultural identity; he had trouble fitting into his predominantly white college, but also struggled fitting into the black heritage of Harlem. After graduating with a political science degree in 1983, Obama moved to Chicago and worked as a community organizer. It was at this time in his life that he came to Christian faith, later saying, "It was through that experience working with pastors... trying to heal the wounds of hurting neighborhoods that I came to know Jesus Christ myself and embrace him as my Lord and Savior."
SHOW PICTURE During his first term, Obama worked to guide the country out of the recession he inherited, and passed the Affordable Care Act in 2010, perhaps his most notable presidential accomplishment. This law prohibited the denial of coverage due to pre-existing conditions, thus broadening insurance coverage and access to medical aid for millions of citizens. It was dubbed "Obamacare" by opponents who believed the law was an unconstitutional overreach by the government, and continued to be the most controversial aspect of his presidency.
