Galaxy of Kenshine

Barack Obama the tall, ‘black’ and handsome Senator from Illinois whom the Time magazine in 2005 dubbed as among hundred most influential persons in the world, is poised to make history by becoming the first African-American to rise to the Presidency.
Perhaps because of that unexplainable something called charisma, Obama draws huge crowds to his campaign rallies. From Oprah Winfrey to Robert de Niro, the list of his celebrity supporters seems unlimited.

Son of a Kenyan father and an American mother, Barack Hussein Obama II was born at Honolulu, Hawai in 1961. Having lived mostly with his mother after his parents separated, when he was barely two years old, Obama’s first emotional meeting with his father was just before the latter died in an accident. Obama attended schools in Jakarta and Honolulu where he stayed with his maternal grandparents for some years. After graduating from Columbia University and being trained as a lawyer, Obama went to work as an attorney with Miner, Barnhill & Galland from 1993 to 1996. He also served as a lecturer of constitutional law at the Chicago Law School for sometime.

He married Michelle Robinson in 1992 who is also a Harvard Law School graduate. The couple have two young daughters, Malia Ann and Natasha ("Sasha").

Obama was elected to the Illinois State Senate in 1996, 1998 and 2002. But in early 2000 he failed in his bid for the US House of Representatives. He came in the limelight for the first time in 2004, when during his campaign, he delivered an address at the Democratic National Convention in Boston for which he received a standing ovation. The speech is likely to go down in the history of America as one of the finest.

A strong critic of the Iraq War and Bush’s other key policies, Obama’s main focus in foreign affairs has been arms control for which he travelled extensively across the world.

As Illinois Senator, Obama has focused on areas as diverse as the challenges of globalization, economic upliftment of low income groups, poverty and the bitter aftermath of hurricane Katrina, genocide in Darfur, tax cuts and use of alternative fuels.

Barack Obama’s presidential campaign has been marked by the extensive use of a logo consisting of letter ‘O’ with the centre suggesting a sunrise and his emphasis on his patriotism. Obama has been able to create a tremendous fan following due to his magnetic personality, brilliant oration and ability to connect to the youth. Obama is the image of youthful America with ideas as fresh and contemporary as his age. In the three presidential debates between him and Mc Cain, Obama has mirrored his brilliance and this ‘man from nowhere’ now really seems set to rule the most powerful state of the world.