Barack Obama was the 44th President of the United States. He spent 8 years in power from January 20, 2009, to January 20, 2017 (He was re-elected as the President in 2013 by beating ). He was the first African American President of the United States. Before serving as the President of the U.S., he was the United States Senator from Illinois for almost 4 years from January 2005 to November 2008. Even before that, he was the Member of the Illinois Senate from January 1997 to November 2004.
Sun Sign
Leo
Residence
In 2017, Obama bought a nine-bedroom house for $8.1 million on Belmont Road in Washington D.C.
Nationality
Education
Barack Obama got his early education from Indonesian schools – Sekolah Dasar Katolik Santo Fransiskus Asisi (St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Elementary School) and Sekolah Dasar Negeri Menteng 01 (State Elementary School Menteng 01/Besuki Public School). During these 4 years in Jakarta, he also received English-language Calvert School homeschooling from his mother.
After he returned to live with his maternal grandparents in Honolulu, he got admission at the Punahou School in 1971. He had managed to secure a scholarship in the 5th grade and completed his high school education in 1979 from the same school.
After high school graduation, he got enrolled at the Occidental College in Los Angeles. In 1981, he decided to transfer to the Columbia University as a junior. He graduated from the university with a BA degree. He had majored in political science with a specialty in international relations.
In 1988, he got admission at the Harvard Law School and graduated from there in 1991 with a JD degree magna cum laude.
Family
- Father – Barack Obama Sr. (Kenyan Senior Governmental Economist)
- Mother – Ann Dunham (Anthropologist)
- Siblings – Maya Soetoro-Ng (Younger Maternal Half-Sister), Auma Obama (Paternal Half-Sister), Malik Obama (Paternal Half-Brother), George Obama (Paternal Half-Brother), Bernard Obama (Paternal Half-Brother), Abo Obama (Paternal Half-Brother), David Ndesandjo (Paternal Half-Brother), Mark Okoth Obama Ndesandjo (Paternal Half-Brother)
- Others – Hussein Onyango Obama (Paternal Grandfather), Habibah Akumu Nyanjoga (Paternal Grandmother), Stanley Armour Dunham (Maternal Grandfather), Madelyn Lee Payne (Maternal Grandmother)
Manager
Barack Obama can be reached through the Barack Obama Foundation and Office of Barack and Michelle Obama.
Girlfriend / Spouse
Barack Obama has dated
- Megan Hughes (1979) – For his high school senior prom in 1979, Obama took Megan Hughes, who was a student at the Hawaii School for Girls at La Pietra, as his date. The prom was published by Time magazine in May 2013.
- Alex McNear – Obama first met Alex McNear while he was studying at the Occidental College in Los Angeles. However, in 1981, he moved to Columbia University. In the summer of 1982, they reconnected and started going out. For their date, he took her out to an Italian restaurant in New York City. They tried to maintain a long-distance relationship but weren’t able to make it work.
- Genevieve Cook (1983-1985) – As per Obama’s biography written by David Garrow, Obama met Genevieve Cook just after graduating from Columbia University. They had first met at the New Year’s Eve party in 1983. They spent most of the evening talking to each other. For their first date, he invited her to his apartment and prepared a romantic meal for her. In the book, it was also revealed that they didn’t spend much time in getting intimate as they had intercourse on their first date itself. It was also alleged that they used cocaine and marijuana during their relationship. They dated for about one and a half years before separating in June 1985.
- (1989-Present) – Barack Obama first met Michelle Robinson at the law firm Sidley Austin LLP. The firm had assigned 25 years old Michelle as a mentor to Barack, who was 28. About a month later, Obama decided to ask her out but she wasn’t keen as she thought it was tacky because of their working equation. However, she eventually relented and he took her out for a lunch at the Art Institute of Chicago. Then, they took a stroll and went on to see film Do the Right Thing. They got engaged in 1991 at a dinner that was supposed to celebrate Obama clearing his bar exam. At the end of the meal, the waiter came with a dessert and along with it on the tray was a ring. He simply got down on his knee and proposed. In October 1992, they got married in a small and romantic wedding ceremony. In his wedding vows, he promised an interesting life instead of all the riches and luxury. In July 1998, she gave birth to their first daughter, . Their second daughter Natasha Obama was born in July 2001.
Sexual Orientation
Straight
Distinctive Features
- Tall height
- Loud and strong voice
Religion
Obama is officially a Protestant.
Best Known For
- Having served as the 44th President of the United States from 2009 to 2017.
- Being considered as one of the most popular politicians in the world.
First TV Show
In 2001, Barack Obama made his first TV show appearance in the popular talk show, Public Affairs.
Personal Trainer
Barack Obama was considered as one of the fittest presidents in the US history. He was known to workout daily and often used to play basketball games to keep himself even more active and fit. And, after leaving the White House, he has only ramped up his workout regime.
He still relies on the expert guidance of Cornell McClellan, who has been training Obama and his wife for over 20 years and had moved to Washington from Chicago when Obama became president. McClellan mixes up the workout regime to keep his body guessing and to get the most out of the workout regime.
Apart from lifting regular weights, Obama also uses kettlebells in his exercises. McClellan has also added TRX bands, , and tubes to add more value to Obama’s exercises.
He complements his workout regime by eating healthy. He focusses on eating a lot of and fresh veggies. He usually prefers salmon or a healthy salad topped with red peppers, chicken, and sesame seed dressing for the dinner. To curb his hunger in between meals, he snacks on nuts or trail mix.
Barack Obama Favorite Things
- Movies – The Godfather (1972), The Godfather: Part II (1974)
- 2017 Books – The Power by Naomi Alderman, Grant by Ron Chernow, Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City by Matthew Desmond, Janesville: An American Story by Amy Goldstein, Exit West by Mohsin Hamid, Five-Carat Soul by James McBride, and many others
- 2017 Songs – Mi Gente by & Willy William, Havana by (feat. ), Blessed by , The Joke by , First World Problems by (feat. Daniel Caesar), Rise Up by Andra Day, Wild Thoughts by (feat. and ), and many others
- Chicago Restaurant – Italian Fiesta Pizzeria
- Drink – Black Cherry Iced Tea
Source – , ,
Barack Obama Facts
- In Arabic, his first name translates to ‘blessed by God.’
- In 2006, he won a Grammy Award for the Best Spoken Word for the audiobook version of his autobiography, . He won his second Grammy Award in 2008 in the same category for his book, The Audacity of Hope.
- In his appearance on Late Night with , he revealed that his nicknames, ‘Bama’ and ‘Rock’ were coined by the former US president George W. Bush.
- He holds the distinction of being the first US president to be born in Hawaii. He is also the first president to be born outside of the contiguous 48 states.
- While he was growing, his father was mostly absent from his life. When he was just 3 years old, his father moved back to Kenya and visited Barack only once at the Christmas’s eve in 1971.
- Due to the years he spent living in Indonesia, he was able to speak Indonesian fluently as a child. Also, during this phase, his stepfather taught him the importance of resilience.
- In his teens, he experimented with alcohol, cocaine, and marijuana as he sought to discover himself.
- After graduating from Columbia University, he worked as a writer and financial researcher for a year at the Business International Corporation.
- In 1985, he worked in the role of a project coordinator for the New York Public Interest Research Group at the City College of New York campus for about 3 months.
- About 2 years after graduating from the university, he was appointed as the director of the Developing Communities Project, which is a church-based community organization that operated in the Catholic parishes of Chicago.
- In his first year at Harvard Law College, he was appointed as an editor of the Harvard Law Review and in the following year, he was made the president of the journal, which made him the first president of black origin in the history of publication.
- His appointment as a president of Harvard Law Review got him his first nationwide exposure and got him a publishing contract for his first book, .
- In 1992, he was appointed as a lecturer to teach constitutional law at the University of Chicago Law School. In 1996, he was made the senior lecturer. Overall, he taught at the esteemed university for 12 years.
- In 1994, he was inducted in the board of directors of the Woods Fund of Chicago, which funds the Developing Communities Project. He held onto the position till 2002.
- In 1996, Obama started his legislative career by getting elected to the Illinois Senate after winning Illinois’s 13th District. He was reelected in 1998 and 2002.
- In January 2003, he formally announced his candidacy for the US Senate. He managed to romp to the victory in November by securing over 70% of the votes.
- In February 2007, he announced his candidacy for the US president in front of the Old State Capitol building in Springfield. It was at this same location that Abraham Lincoln had delivered his iconic House Divided speech in 1858.
- He was up against in a bid to win Democratic Party nomination but in face of Obama’s better planning and fundraising ability, Clinton decided to surrender in June 2008 and officially endorse him.
- In 2012 US presidential elections, Obama became the first Democratic president since Franklin D. Roosevelt to have won the majority of the public votes on two occasions.
- Obama has been often criticized for creating a vacuum and atmosphere, favorable for the growth of ISIS in Syria by weakening the legal government headed by President Assad and at the same time, arming the rebels. It has been noted that ISIS had emerged out of these rebel groups.
- In July 2015, he managed to negotiate a deal with Iran that put a halt to the Arabic nation’s pursuit to acquire nuclear weapons. In return, Obama administration lifted a number of sanctions and provided monetary relief as well.
- In March 2016, he became the first sitting US President since Calvin Coolidge in 1928 to visit Cuba as part of an official delegation. Pope Francis had been used as an intermediary for the negotiation process.
- In May 2016, Barack achieved the distinction of being the first sitting US President to have visited Hiroshima, Japan. He also paid tribute to the victims of the World War II bombings at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum.
- The Time magazine recognized him as its Person of the Year on two occasions – in 2008 and 2012.
- In October 2009, it was announced that the Norwegian Nobel Committee would honor President Obama with the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to strengthen international diplomacy.
- In a survey conducted by the American Political Science Association in 2018, Obama was placed on the 8th spot in the list featuring the greatest American Presidents.
- Despite having left office in 2017, Obama remained still very active in US politics and was often seen using his social media accounts to rebuke President ’s administration for their decisions including their stance on immigration and climate deal.
- In 2017, it was announced that the Obama Presidential Center will be created at Jackson Park in Chicago. This planned presidential library would be hosted by the University of Chicago.
- Obama has often come under criticism for ordering military involvement in Libya without following a proper procedure. Also, the fact that Muammar Gaddafi’s ouster has led to the creation of violent city-states doesn’t help either.
- If ever a biopic is made on Obama, Barack would like to play him in that movie.
- In 2020, Barack revealed on The Late Show with that he regretted not giving a Presidential Medal of Freedom while he was the President of the United States.
Facts of Barack Hussein Obama II
- Gender Male
- full nameBarack Hussein Obama II
- middle nameHussein
- nicknamesBarry, Bama, Rock, The One, No Drama Obama, Mr. President, Barack H. Obama, B.H. Obama, BO
- birthplaceHonolulu, Hawaii, United States
- Date of Birth August 04, 1961
- Age 63 years 2 months
- Horoscope Leo
- Lucky Number 11
- Lucky Stone Ruby
- Lucky Color Gold
- Best Match for Marriage Sagittarius, Gemini, Aries
- ethnicity / ethnic backgroundMultiracial
- nationalityAmerican
- net worth$70 million
- professionPolitician
- weight81.5 kg or 180 lbs
- height6 ft 1 in or 185 cm
- hair colorBlack
- eye colorDark Brown
- body type / buildSlim
- collegeColumbia University
- motherAnn Dunham
- fatherBarack Obama Sr.
- favorite moviesThe Godfather (1972), The Godfather: Part II (1974)