Obama

Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician and lawyer who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American to hold the presidency. Before his presidency, he represented Illinois in the U.S. Senate from 2005 to 2008 and practiced law in Chicago after working as a community organizer.

Obama was born in Honolulu, Hawaii. He is the son of a Kenyan father and an American mother. He studied at Occidental College, transferred to Columbia University for his bachelor's degree in political science, and later earned a J.D. from Harvard Law School, where he was editor of the Harvard Law Review.

In 2008 he won the presidency and was reelected in 2012. His administration enacted the Affordable Care Act to expand health insurance coverage and implemented the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to address the recession. Other notable actions include the repeal of "don’t ask, don’t tell," the operation that killed Osama bin Laden, and diplomatic agreements such as the Iran nuclear deal and participation in the Paris Agreement on climate change. The administration also pursued financial reform through the Dodd–Frank Act.

After leaving office, Obama has remained active in public life through the Obama Foundation, public appearances, and book publications. His memoirs include Dreams from My Father (1995) and The Audacity of Hope (2006); his post-presidential book A Promised Land was released in 2020.

Obama is married to Michelle Obama, with two daughters, Malia and Sasha. The family has residences in Washington, D.C., and previously in Chicago, Illinois.