2 episodes
Barack Obama - Audio Biography Biography
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- Government
When Barack Obama was elected president in 2008, he became the first African American to hold the office. The framers of the Constitution always hoped that our leadership would not be limited to Americans of wealth or family connections. Subject to the prejudices of their time—many of them owned slaves—most would not have foreseen an African American president. Obama’s father, Barack Sr., a Kenyan economist, met his mother, Stanley Ann Dunham, when both were students in Hawaii, where Barack was born on August 4, 1961. They later divorced, and Barack’s mother married a man from Indonesia, where he spent his early childhood. Before fifth grade, he returned to Honolulu to live with his maternal grandparents and attend Punahou School on scholarship.In his memoir Dreams from My Father (1995), Obama describes the complexities of discovering his identity in adolescence. After two years at Occidental College in Los Angeles, he transferred to Columbia University, where he studied political science and international relations. Following graduation in 1983, Obama worked in New York City, then became a community organizer on the South Side of Chicago, coordinating with churches to improve housing conditions and set up job-training programs in a community hit hard by steel mill closures. In 1988, he went to Harvard Law School, where he attracted national attention as the first African American president of the Harvard Law Review. Returning to Chicago, he joined a small law firm specializing in civil rights.In 1992, Obama married Michelle Robinson, a lawyer who had also excelled at Harvard Law. Their daughters, Malia and Sasha, were born in 1998 and 2001, respectively. Obama was elected to the Illinois Senate in 1996, and then to the U.S. Senate in 2004. At the Democratic National Convention that summer, he delivered a much acclaimed keynote address. Some pundits instantly pronounced him a future president, but most did not expect it to happen for some time. Nevertheless, in 2008 he was elected over Arizona Senator John McCain by 365 to 173 electoral votes.As an incoming president, Obama faced many challenges—an economic collapse, wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the continuing menace of terrorism. Inaugurated before an estimated crowd of 1.8 million people, Obama proposed unprecedented federal spending to revive the economy and also hoped to renew America’s stature in the world. During his first term he signed three signature bills: an omnibus bill to stimulate the economy, legislation making health care more accessible and affordable, and legislation reforming the nation’s financial institutions. Obama also pressed for a fair pay act for women, financial reform legislation, and efforts for consumer protection. In 2009, Obama became the fourth president to receive the Nobel Peace Prize.In 2012, he was reelected over former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney by 332 to 206 electoral votes. The Middle East remained a key foreign policy challenge. Obama had overseen the killing of Osama bin Laden, but a new self-proclaimed Islamic State arose during a civil war in Syria and began inciting terrorist attacks. Obama sought to manage a hostile Iran with a treaty that hindered its development of nuclear weapons. The Obama administration also adopted a climate change agreement signed by 195 nations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and slow global warming.In the last year of his second term, Obama spoke at two events that clearly moved him—the 50th anniversary of the civil rights march from Selma to Montgomery, and the dedication of the National Museum of African American History and Culture. “Our union is not yet perfect, but we are getting closer,” he said in Selma. “And that’s why we celebrate,” he told those attending the museum opening in Washington, “mindful that our work is not yet done.”
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Barack Obama Audio Biography - Long
Barack Obama Audio Biography - Long
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Barack Obama Audio Biography - White House Version
Welcome to the Barack Obama Audio Biography.
This audio biography is sourced from The White House and recorded for your enjoyment by Quiet Please Studios. If you enjoy this be sure to check out Barack Obama Great Speeches podcast. Now for the Biography.
In the unfolding story of America, a tale rich with dreams and daring, the election of Barack Obama in 2008 marked a chapter of historical significance. He became the first African American to ascend to the nation’s highest office, realizing a vision far beyond the imaginations of the Constitution’s framers. They, bound by their era's limitations and contradictions, may never have envisaged such a milestone.
Barack Obama’s roots were as diverse as the nation he would come to lead. Born to Barack Sr., a Kenyan economist, and Stanley Ann Dunham, a student from Kansas, in the tropical climes of Hawaii on August 4, 1961, his early life was a tapestry of cultures. His parents’ union, short-lived, was followed by his mother’s marriage to an Indonesian, whisking young Barack to Jakarta for a chapter of his childhood. It was back in Honolulu, under his grandparents' care, that Obama, a scholarship student at Punahou School, began to weave his own American story.
Obama’s memoir, "Dreams from My Father," penned in 1995, is a poignant exploration of a young man’s journey to find his identity amidst the complex mosaics of heritage and expectation. His academic path took him from Occidental College in Los Angeles to the storied halls of Columbia University in New York, studying political science and international relations. Post-graduation, Obama’s compass pointed him towards community organizing in Chicago’s South Side, a place echoing with the needs and hopes of its residents.
Harvard Law School beckoned in 1988, where Obama’s election as the first African American president of the Harvard Law Review cast a spotlight on his emerging leadership. Returning to Chicago, he joined a law firm with a focus on civil rights, weaving his commitment to justice into his professional fabric.
The personal strand of Obama’s life found harmony in 1992 when he married Michelle Robinson, a fellow Harvard Law alumna. Their daughters, Malia and Sasha, born in 1998 and 2001, added familial warmth to his journey. His political career, beginning with the Illinois Senate in 1996 and escalating to the U.S. Senate in 2004, was propelled forward by a standout keynote address at the Democratic National Convention, setting the stage for his presidential bid in 2008.
Obama’s victory over Senator John McCain was not just a political triumph but a beacon of change, garnering 365 electoral votes. Inheriting a nation at the crossroads of economic peril and global challenges, President Obama stood before 1.8 million people, inaugurating not just his presidency but a new era of hope and action. His administration was marked by significant legislative achievements: economic stimulus, healthcare reform, and financial institution restructuring, alongside strides in women’s rights, consumer protection, and global climate initiatives.
Obama’s re-election in 2012 against Mitt Romney, with 332 electoral votes, was a reaffirmation of his leadership in turbulent times. His foreign policy navigated the complex terrain of the Middle East, the eradication of Osama bin Laden, the rise of the Islamic State, and the delicate Iran nuclear treaty.
In his final year, two moments stood out: his speech at the 50th anniversary of the Selma to Montgomery march, and the opening of the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington. Obama, ever the orator, captured the essence of America’s journey towards a more perfect union, a path both celebrated and acknowledged as unfinished.
As Obama’s presidency drew to a close, his words in Selma and Washington resonated with the ongoing narrative of America’s quest for equality and understanding. His tenure, a blend of...