President Obama: term of office. When does Obama's term end? The reign of Barack Obama: what did he fight for and what did he achieve? President Obama's term ends

Barack Obama's first presidential term began in the midst of a global economic downturn (0.3% in 2008, 3.5% in 2009), and the president's main goal was to stabilize the situation. “I want every American to know that we will rebuild, we will recover, and the United States will come back stronger than before,” he promised in a keynote address to Congress in early 2009. The main thing is to restore confidence in the economy and restart the credit model. financing, he noted. In February 2009, the government decided on a large-scale anti-crisis program of $787 billion. Among the main targeted achievements of anti-crisis measures were the rescue of the US automobile industry and the reform of the financial sector; the economy was brought to a growth trajectory (2.4% in 2010), but then the pace slowed to 1.8% in 2011 and 2.2% in 2012. In 2013-2014. the recovery will be subdued - 2% and 2.8%, the OECD predicts.

The President failed to achieve a significant reduction in unemployment: it rose from 5.8% in 2008 to 8.1% in 2012. Obama needs an economic growth rate of at least 3-4%, at 2% high unemployment will take root for the longest period since the Great Depression, writes WSJ. US consumer confidence remains weak, the OECD writes, and the housing market is just beginning to emerge from its peak: after a 6.6% decline in 2011, growth was recorded at 0.4% last year. According to the organization's forecast, the growth rate of private consumption will increase from 1.9% to 2.1-2.9% in 2013, the public sector will continue to decline (by 1% in 2012, by 0.5% until 2013 . and by 0.8% in 2014).

Get your finances in order

Obama broke his promise to achieve a halving of the budget deficit inherited from the George W. Bush administration - from $1.3 trillion to $533 billion in a short period of time. The first draft budget for 2010 assumed a record US budget deficit of $1.75 trillion (12.3% of GDP) - a historical record for the United States in peacetime, similar values ​​were achieved in 1942, and eventually it was reduced to $1.063 trillion. The national debt grew from 71.6% in 2008 to 109.8% in 2012. Putting government finances in order is one of President Obama's key tasks in his second term, analysts say. It was possible to keep the country from the fiscal cliff, but many issues need to be resolved - to take control of the public debt, to reform the tax system, says Chris Weafer from Sberbank CIB. It will not be possible to reverse the growth trend of public debt in the next two years, the OECD is pessimistic: the level of public debt will increase from 109.8% to 114.1% by 2014

Popular sentiment has changed during Obama's first term, a Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll shows. Americans are seeing some signs of improvement in the economy, but have gloomy forecasts for the country's prospects and their personal well-being. If hope prevailed in 2009, the keynote of 2013 is the ability to cope with difficulties, notes one of the authors of the survey, Peter Hart: “Americans are expecting difficult times.” The level of household savings over the past two years has decreased from 5.1% in 2010 to 3.7% of GDP.

Return to long-term strategy in foreign policy

Obama's aides and advisers interviewed by the New York Times say that the president is focused on building a long-term strategy in foreign policy and intends to return to his original goals - restoring the image and influence of the United States in the world, in his first term he was forced to spend most of his time putting out fires. The peak of the crisis gave Obama unprecedented opportunities and support, since the task of bringing the economy out of the dive was number one, now there is no unconditional consensus, there is a split in the government on many issues, writes WSJ. Many say that in the second term the president will be more free in his actions, but there will be no fewer restrictions, since his main task is to transfer the White House to a successor from the Democratic Party, as well as the party’s victory in the midterm congressional elections, points out political scientist Nikolai Zlobin.

Obama began his first presidential term with the promise of a new era in relations with the Arab world, Asia and Europe, but no tangible results followed. National Security Advisor to the President Tom Donilon points out that the largest coalition has been assembled against Iran, but there is no decision on the nuclear program. There is no breakthrough in the Middle East, the Iranian problem has not been resolved, and relations with Russia have seriously deteriorated by the end of the term, says Valery Garbuzov from the Institute of the USA and Canada of the Russian Academy of Sciences: expectations were too high.

In his first term, Obama acted as a president who ends wars; his tactics fit into the concept of “leadership from the back row,” according to which the allies were given the opportunity to solve problems themselves while providing them with significant assistance, as was the case in Libya, recalls Garbuzov. The only achievements can be called the complete withdrawal of troops from Iraq and the defeat of the top leadership of al-Qaeda, notes the New York Times.

Among the priority tasks in foreign policy, Zlobin names the establishment of relations with Israel, which became complicated in 2009, the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan, and the establishment of relations with Europe and Latin America, which were relegated to the background due to economic problems and challenges in the Arab world. The nomination of John Kerry and Charles Hagel for the posts of Secretary of State and Secretary of Defense shows that in the second term Obama will be focused on finding a compromise and a negotiated solution to the problem, Garbuzov is sure.

Obama set the government the task of building commercial cooperation, despite political differences, noted US Trade Representative Ronald Kirk. Trade turnover with Russia from 2009-2011 grew 1.8 times to $42.9 billion, according to the results of 11 months - $36.5 billion. The fall of 2008, when Barack Obama was elected President of the United States, was a very tense time for Russian-American relations, said the US Ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul: But the last three years have been simply amazing in terms of how much we have achieved and how much real work has been done - the operation in Afghanistan, the New START treaty, the "1-2-3 agreement" on nuclear cooperation, Russia's entry into WTO, new visa agreement, common actions on North Korea and Iran.

However, the end of last year was marked by the adoption of hostile laws by both countries - the Magnitsky Act and the Russian response, recalls Zlobin. At the level of rhetoric, relations were often tense before, but this did not transfer to the area of ​​practical interaction; now relations have frozen and, it seems, there is no intellectual potential to bring them out of the impasse, the expert regrets.

Barack Hussein Obama Jr. Born on August 4, 1961 in Honolulu (Hawaii, USA). 44th President of the United States of America. Winner of the Nobel Peace Prize 2009. Before being elected president, he was a federal senator from Illinois. Re-elected for a second term in 2012.

The first African American nominated for the presidency of the United States by one of the two major parties, and the first black president in the national history of heads of state, as well as a president with an African surname and a middle name of Arabic etymological origin.

Obama is mulatto, but, unlike most black Americans, he is not a descendant of slaves, but the son of a student from Kenya and a white American woman, Stanley Ann Dunham.

A graduate of Columbia University and Harvard Law School, where he was also the first African American editor of the university's Harvard Law Review. Obama also worked as a community organizer and civil rights lawyer.

He taught constitutional law at the Chicago Institute of Legal Sciences from 1992 to 2004 and was simultaneously elected to the Illinois State Senate three times, from 1997 to 2004.

After an unsuccessful run in 2000 for the US House of Representatives, he ran for the US Senate in January 2003. After winning the primaries in March 2004, Obama gave the keynote address at the Democratic National Convention in July 2004.

He was elected to the Senate in November 2004 with 70% of the vote.

As a member of the Democratic minority in the 109th Congress, he helped create laws to regulate conventional weapons and increase transparency in the use of government budgets. He also made official trips to Eastern Europe (including Russia), the Middle East and Africa.

While serving in the 110th Congress, he helped create laws relating to voter fraud, lobbying, climate change, nuclear terrorism and discharged US military personnel.

Obama announced his desire to run for president in February 2007 and in 2008, in the presidential primaries at the Democratic National Convention, he was officially nominated as the Democratic Party's presidential candidate along with his vice presidential candidate, Senator Joseph Biden from Delaware.

In the 2008 presidential election, Obama beat the ruling Republican Party's candidate, John McCain, with 52.9% of the popular vote and 365 Electoral College votes against McCain's 45.7% and 173.

Barack Obama - curiosities

On October 9, 2009, he received the Nobel Peace Prize with the wording “for extraordinary efforts in strengthening international diplomacy and cooperation between people.”

In the 2012 presidential election, Obama beat Republican candidate Mitt Romney with 51.1% of the popular vote and 332 Electoral College votes to Romney's 47.2% and 206.

Barack Obama was born in Honolulu, State of Hawaii. His parents met in 1960 while studying at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. At the same time, during the election campaign in the United States, rumors circulated that Obama was born outside the United States, which would deprive him of the right to be elected to the presidency.

On March 1, 2012, Arizona Sheriff Joseph Arpaio announced that Barack Obama's birth certificate may be a computer-generated forgery; he made a similar statement regarding the military registration form filled out by the future president in 1980.

Father - Barack Hussein Obama Sr. (1936-1982) - Kenyan, son of a healer from the Luo people. The mission school paid for his studies in Nairobi and sent him to study econometrics at the University of Hawaii, where he organized the Foreign Students Association and became the top of his class.

Mother - Stanley Ann Dunham (1942-1995) - born on a military base in Kansas into a family of Christian Americans, but later became an agnostic. She is of English, Scottish, Irish and German descent. Barack Obama also has Cherokee ancestry through her mother, Madeleine Lee Payne. The surname Dunham itself belongs to the American aristocracy and comes from the pioneer Richard Singletary and his son Jonathan (1639/40-1724), who, for reasons that are not entirely clear, changed his surname to Dunham. Family legend traces him to the owners of Dunham Castle in Scotland, which was allegedly criminally disinherited by relatives in infancy.

Stanley Ann was studying anthropology at the University of Hawaii when she met Obama Sr. Grandmother Madeleine Lee raised Obama for a long time, they were very attached to each other. Obama paused his presidential campaign to visit her in the hospital. Madeleine Lee Payne Dunham died on November 2, 2008.

Obama Sr.'s father and Dunham's parents were against the marriage, but they got married on February 2, 1961. Two years after Barack was born, his father went to continue his studies at Harvard, but Dunham and Obama Jr. soon returned to Hawaii. Barack's parents divorced in January 1964.

While studying at Harvard University, Obama Sr. met the American teacher Ruth Nidesand, with whom, after completing his studies in the United States, he went to Kenya. This was his third marriage, which produced two children. Upon returning to Kenya, he worked for an oil company and then received a position as an economist in the government apparatus. He last saw his son when he was 10 years old. In Kenya, Obama Sr. was involved in a car accident, as a result of which he lost both legs, and later died in another car accident.

Soon after the divorce, the mother met another foreign student, Indonesian Lolo Sutoro, married him and in 1967 left with him and little Barak for Jakarta. From this marriage, Barack had a half-sister, Maya. Barack's mother died of ovarian cancer in 1995.

Barack Obama as a child

In Jakarta, Obama Jr. studied in one of the public schools from 6 to 10 years old. After that, he returned to Honolulu, where he lived with his mother's parents until he graduated from the prestigious private school Panahou in 1979.

He described his childhood memories in his book. "My Father's Dreams". As an adult, he admitted to smoking marijuana and taking cocaine and alcohol in school, which he told voters at the Presidential Campaign Civic Forum on August 16, 2008, and described it as his lowest moral low point.

After high school, he studied at Occidental College in Los Angeles for two years and then transferred to Columbia University, where he majored in international relations. By the time he received his bachelor's degree in 1983, Obama was already working at the International Business Corporation and the New York Research Center.

In 1985, when he moved to Chicago, he began working as a community organizer in disadvantaged areas of the city. In 1988, Obama entered Harvard Law School, where in 1990 he became the first African-American editor of the university's Harvard Law Review.

Obama is left-handed.

Obama's height is 185 cm.

In 1996, he was elected to the Illinois State Senate.

He served as a senator from 1997 to 2004, representing the US Democratic Party. Re-elected twice: in 1998 and 2002. As a senator, he collaborated with both Democrats and Republicans: he worked with representatives of both parties on programs to support low-income families through tax cuts, acted as a supporter of the development of preschool education, and supported measures to tighten control over the work of investigative agencies.

In 2000, he attempted to run for election to the US House of Representatives, but lost the primaries to the incumbent black congressman Bobby Rush.

In 2004, he entered the race for nomination to one of the seats from Illinois in the US Senate. He won a convincing victory over six opponents in the primaries.

Sworn in as a United States Senator on January 4, 2005, becoming the 5th African American U.S. Senator in the country's history.

At the end of August 2005, as part of the Nunn-Lugar Cooperative Threat Reduction program, he flew to Russia to inspect Russian nuclear facilities together with Republican Senator Richard Lugar.

During the trip on August 28, upon departure at Perm Bolshoye Savino airport, an incident occurred: the senators were detained for three hours due to their refusal to “comply with the demands of the border guards” to inspect the plane, which had diplomatic immunity. Later, the Russian Foreign Ministry expressed regret “in connection with the misunderstanding that arose and the inconvenience caused to the senators.” In his book, Obama regarded the incident as one of the moments during his trip "that recalled the days of the Cold War."

While a senator, he visited the White House several times at the invitation of President George W. Bush.

The nonpartisan publication Congressional Quarterly characterized him as a "loyal Democrat" based on an analysis of all Senate votes from 2005-2007. National Journal recommended him as the "most liberal" senator based on an assessment of elected votes during 2007.

In 2008, Congress.org ranked him as the 11th most powerful senator.

On February 10, 2007, in front of the old Illinois State Capitol in Springfield, Obama announced his candidacy for the presidency of the United States. The location was symbolic because it was there that Abraham Lincoln delivered his historic “House Divided” speech in 1858. Throughout the campaign, Obama advocated for a quick end to the Iraq War, energy independence and universal health care. His campaign slogans are "Change We Can Believe in" and "Yes We Can!" (The song Yes We Can, recorded by a number of famous artists using words from Obama's campaign speech, received great fame and a Webby Award).

During the first half of 2007, the Obama campaign raised $58 million. Small donations (less than $200) accounted for 16.4 million of that amount. The number set a record for presidential campaign fundraising in the first six months of the calendar year before an election. The size of the small portion of the donation was also quite significant.

In January 2008, the campaign set another record with $36.8 million, the most ever raised by a presidential candidate in the Democratic primary.

Obama is the first and, as of 2012, the only US presidential candidate to refuse public funding of his election campaign. On November 4, 2008, Obama secured the support of 338 of the 538 electors with the required 270 votes, which meant he would take office on January 20, 2009. At the same time, voter turnout reached a record of 64%.

On January 22, 2009, he signed an order to close the prison for suspected terrorists at the American military base at Guantanamo Bay (Cuba) within a year.

On January 29, the US Congress supported the plan to stimulate the American economy proposed by the US President. The plan involves an injection of $819 billion. On February 10, the US Senate approved Obama's emergency anti-crisis plan at a cost of $838 billion. When implementing the plan, up to 4 million new jobs should be created in 2 years. The plan also contains provisions for direct investment in the healthcare, energy, and education sectors.

On February 17, Barack Obama sent an additional 17 thousand troops to Afghanistan, and also signed a $787 billion anti-crisis plan adopted by the US Congress in Denver.

On July 6-8, Barack Obama made an official working visit to Moscow. During the visit, bilateral agreements were signed, including on the transit of American military cargo to Afghanistan through Russian territory.

On October 9, 2009 he received the Nobel Peace Prize. Members of the Nobel Committee considered Obama's efforts "in strengthening international diplomacy and cooperation between people" worthy of the award. Obama became the third US president, after Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson, to receive the Nobel Peace Prize while in office (it was also awarded to former President Jimmy Carter).

According to Obama himself, he has not yet earned this award. According to many experts, Obama received the award largely due to his promise to reduce nuclear arsenals, made in early 2009.

In 2010, Obama, despite Republican opposition, achieved the passage of a health care reform law.

In 2011, the US army, on Obama's orders, participated in the NATO intervention in Libya.

On April 4, 2011, Barack Obama confirmed his desire to run for a second presidential term, began raising money for the election campaign and announced the start of the presidential race.

Obama's opponent was Republican Mitt Romney. The intrigue of the elections continued until the last moment. As a result, Obama received a noticeable advantage in the electoral votes (303 versus 206 for Romney), but overall he was supported by about half of voters.

Barack Obama's height: 185 centimeters.

Personal life of Barack Obama:

Since 1992, Barack Obama has been married to (born January 17, 1964), a practicing lawyer. They have two daughters - Malia Ann (born in 1998) and Natasha (“Sasha”; born in 2001).

Barack Obama and Michelle Obama

Barack and Michelle Obama with children

President for the holidays Barack Obama came away with very poor results in the opinion polls. The approval rating for the president's actions steadily decreased by 1-2 percentage points. every month throughout the year. However, the worst thing for him, perhaps, is not even the digital indicators, which are just external consequences of deep processes. The most unpleasant thing is that Americans are gradually losing faith in their president.
This week the results of another CNN/ORC International survey became known. When asked whether Americans see President Obama as a decisive and strong leader, 53% of those surveyed answered “no.” Over six months, the number of the president's supporters fell by 12%. More than half of respondents believe that the president does not inspire confidence. Six out of ten Americans don't believe he can lead the government effectively. On this issue, the rating drop over the same six months was 13%.

71% of Americans still think Barack Obama is a nice person. But for the first time since CNN began asking the question: Do you think Mr. Obama is honest and trustworthy in 2008, more than half of the U.S. population said no.
Another proof of Barack Obama's loss of popularity can be seen in his inclusion in GQ magazine's ranking of the least influential celebrities, in which he ranks 17th out of 25 places.

The main thing is to use political capital in time

A year ago it seemed that after the defeat in the presidential elections Mitt Romney Republicans will crawl away to lick their wounds. In the first days after the election, it seemed that the new-old president was being given a rare opportunity - a lull lasting a year and a half, when he would be able to complete his tasks and leave a deep mark on American history. Moreover, now he does not need to be careful and think about new elections.
However, harsh reality destroyed all hopes and rosy dreams. Nowadays in every corner of Washington you can hear talk about the curse of the second term, which has ruined the second term of most of the 15 other presidents who managed to remain in the White House for another four years.
Enough to remember Abraham Lincoln, assassinated 42 days after delivering his famous inaugural address after taking office for the second time as President of the United States. The second presidential term of the most famous general of the Civil War Ulysses Grant(1873-77) turned out to be even worse than the bad first.

You can also remember Grover Cleveland, who, after being elected to a second term in 1892, was diagnosed with cancer and was caught in a financial crisis that lasted most of his second term.
An example can be given in the 20th century Richard Nixon, perhaps the most striking example of the curse of the second term. In the second election, he won one of the most landslide victories in US history, but this did not stop him from resigning in disgrace just two years after his triumph.
And a very recent example is George W. Bush, who immediately after his victory over John Kerry in November 2004 boasted: “ I have acquired political capital and intend to spend it" Hurricane Katrina, the Iraq War and the 2008 crisis followed.
Bush left the White House with roughly the same record low ratings as Nixon. Surely, as he took his last look at the white mansion that had served as his home for eight years, he thought that it would be better to return to Texas after the end of his first term, when he still had political capital.

Forgot to say "B"

All indications now are that Barack Obama has also fallen victim to the second term curse. Negative events in the first year of his second term are happening so quickly that he must be dizzy. Someone in the administration lied about the attack on the American consulate in Benghazi in 2012, then news broke that tax officials were allegedly targeting right-wing organizations. At the same time, the White House had to justify the fact that the Justice Department secretly, naturally, received printouts of telephone conversations of journalists.

On the one hand, these are all minor troubles, but given their number and the fact that they followed one after another almost continuously, without giving time to catch their breath, it is clear that they caused significant damage to the image of President Obama.

In early autumn, the infamous swings in Middle East policy followed, with the White House loudly saying “A” but never having the courage to say “B.” The result of this cowardice, caution, circumspection or manifestation of great intelligence and foresight - everyone here chooses what he likes depending on his political preferences and attitude towards the president - has not only become grievances of regional allies, ranging from Saudi Arabia and Turkey to Israel . The refusal to strike chemical weapons depots and government positions in Syria gave Vladimir Putin the opportunity to lecture Americans on the front page of the New York Times, an event that was not only grotesque, but also humiliating for tens of millions of Americans.

Further more. The wiretapping of several reporters' phones faded before the huge scandal over wiretapping and surveillance by the NSA and other US intelligence agencies of the planet in general and US allies in particular.
Naturally, the partial closure of the government and, of course, the launch of healthcare reform should also be included in the category of emergency. He was a disaster for the president's image. The healthcare.gov website could not handle the influx of everyone wanting to register.
President Obama was heartened when the Iran nuclear deal was signed in Geneva. He probably already dreamed of becoming the person who resolved the conflict with Tehran, which has lasted more than a third of a century, without firing a shot. However, even here his hopes and dreams quickly disappeared like smoke. Congress intends to take care of this after the holidays. Republicans in the main legislative body are threatening not only not to ease sanctions against Tehran, but also to adopt new ones and thereby torpedo the agreement between « Six" and Iran.
One can, of course, recall the problem with illegal migrants, and the same economy, where things are not going as well as the president and his team would like, and much more.
Mr. Obama's approval rating dropped to 42%. This is not as little as Nixon and Bush had, but it is quite enough to say that he is on the “right path.”

Not everything is lost?

Of course, the 44th president has his own explanations and justifications. For example, he can refer to the unprecedented resistance to all his initiatives and affairs on the part of the Republicans entrenched in Congress. And he will be right, because few of his predecessors ever faced such resistance.

The complaint that many experienced ministers and advisers have left the administration does not stand up to criticism, because all two-termers have to deal with this phenomenon.

Obama, of course, found replacements for those who left, but almost all of them are inferior to their predecessors. It is not surprising that in the first year of the second term, the administration is not working as smoothly as in the first term.

As for President Obama's plans for a second term: reform of immigration laws, adoption of laws to combat climate change, etc., the prospects are completely vague. Without much risk of error, one can assume that the president's hands will be tied by fighting with Republicans over the budget and the borrowing ceiling, and that he will have neither time nor energy for other things.
Of course, the curse of the second term is not canon law. Everything can change. At least Barack Obama has hopes of improving things. It is a little consoling that he is not the only one who is not popular among Americans. Republicans, thanks to the Tea Party and the partial government shutdown, are now so unpopular that Democrats could take back control of Congress in next year's midterm elections.
In addition, although there are more unsuccessful two-term candidates, among Obama’s 15 colleagues there are those who could count a second term as an asset. Ronald Reagan's second term is remembered not only for the Iran-Contra scandal, but also for the landmark Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty that marked the end of the Cold War.

And Bill Clinton’s second term is remembered not only for the scandal with Monica Lewinsky, but also for the economic boom, which Americans cannot even dream of in their wildest dreams, and the budget surplus. When Clinton left the White House, his ratings were off the charts at 60%. Barack Obama would probably give a lot for such a rating now.

In fact, Barack Obama is not only a politician. For some time he was engaged in public activities, and also wrote several books, which brought him considerable fame and allowed him to receive votes in the future. Although the future 44th President of the United States was black, his life was predominantly white. The biography of Barack Obama is an example of impeccable pursuit of a goal.

Childhood and early years

Barack Hussein Obama Jr. was born in the Hawaiian city of Honolulu. This happened on August 4, 1961. He was born to Kenyan Barack Hussein Obama Sr. and American Stanley Anne Dunham. The father of the future president came to the United States to study as an economist. Barack Obama Sr. met the future mother of his son at the University of Hawaii. However, he was not very interested in family life. After graduating from university, he went to continue his studies at Harvard. When Obama Jr. was two years old, his father returned to Kenya, where he received a high government rank. He divorced his son's mother.

Four years later, Stanley Ann Dunham remarried a University of Hawaii student, this time an Indonesian. The young family moved to Indonesia, where Barack Obama went to one of the schools in Jakarta and studied there for 4 years. Then Barack decided to return to his homeland - Honolulu. His mother's parents lived there, and he settled with them. In his hometown, Barack entered the prestigious private school Punahou, from which he graduated in 1979. This educational institution is still famous for its famous graduates. During his school years, Obama was fond of basketball. He even won the state championship in 1979 as part of the school team.

Later, Barack Obama will publish memoirs in which he talks about using marijuana and cocaine in high school. Barak himself describes this as far from being the most favorable period in his life, since his school performance decreased significantly due to drug use.

Education and first work activity

After graduation, Obama chose Occidental College in Los Angeles for further education. However, after a few years of study, he transferred to Columbia University. From a book written by Barack himself, you can find out that he left Occidental College due to a large number of racist remarks directed at him. He graduated from the university in 1983 and immediately went to work for a large international company. In his first job, Barack Obama was a financial news editor.

As the politician himself recalls in his memoirs, 1985 was a turning point for him. This year he decided to leave his prestigious workplace and move to Chicago. In the new place, he also decided to change his occupation, so he focused on social activities. Barack helped disadvantaged residents of the city in one of the local church groups. At that time, a politician began to emerge in young Barack, since many of the people’s problems could not be solved by ordinary means. Obama realized that the US legal and constitutional system is far from perfect and therefore needs to be improved.

The problem was that the future president was not an expert in the field of law, so he decided to continue his studies. In 1988, he became a student at Harvard Law School. In parallel with his studies, Barak continued to be involved in social activities, namely, he was the editor of the university newspaper Harvard Law Revive. During his student years, the popular newspaper The New York Times published an article highlighting the successes of the young black Obama. The article noted that Barack became the first black chairman of the University Lawyers' Club in its history.

In 1991, after graduating from university, he returned to Chicago as a certified lawyer. Here he became an advocate in the field of racial inequality. Then, in 1993, Barack Obama took a job at the University of Chicago, where he would teach a course on constitutional law.

Beginning of a political career

In 1995, Barack completed work on his first book, entitled "Dreams Inherited from His Father." Immediately after its publication, it did not gain much popularity. However, in the process of Obama's development as a politician, the book became more and more popular and helped the young politician in his promotion.

In parallel with his work at the university, Barak worked for some time at the headquarters of the Democratic Party of the United States. This allowed him to run for the Illinois State Senate. In 1997, he received the required number of votes and became a senator. In 2000, the young senator ran for the House of Representatives, but lost to a local black opponent. Barack Obama served in the state Senate until 2004. Subsequently, his colleagues spoke positively about Barak’s work. They noted that Obama did not divide senators into Democrats and Republicans, but collaborated with all legislators.

Fame and first steps to the presidency

In 2004, the election campaign for the US Senate began. Barack Obama decided to take part in it from the state of Illinois. During the popular primaries, he managed to beat all six opponents and become the main contender for a seat in the US Senate. Barack Obama's speech before the Democratic National Convention played a decisive role in winning the election. His speech was broadcast live on television. The senatorial candidate called for making the United States a country of free people again and returning the so-called American dream. As an example, he cited examples from his life and the life of his father. The Democratic Party and the people of the United States supported the young politician, as a result of which he gained fame and won elections to the Senate of the United States of America.

In his new elected position, Barack Hussein Obama continued to work with both parties to work on legislation. One of the most significant examples of such cooperation was Obama's visit to Russia together with Republican Senator Richard Lugar. In the Russian Federation, senators negotiated to limit the supply of weapons of mass destruction. During his senatorial career, Obama showed great interest in the development of alternative energy sources.

The rise of Barack Obama as US President

Senatorial activity brought Barack considerable popularity. Newspapers, magazines and other mass media regularly followed the activities of the young politician and made him a very famous person. Obama's popularity increased so much that already in 2006 the public started talking about the senator's possible run for the presidency of the United States. At that time, his only opponent was Hillary Clinton.

At the beginning of 2007, Barack Obama decided to carefully analyze the political situation before the upcoming presidential elections. To do this, he created a committee that took over analysis and monitoring. Based on research conducted by the committee, only 15% of the population supported Barack Obama. While 43% of the country's population were ready to vote for Hilary Clinton. In less than six months, Barak managed to reduce the gap to three percent. As a result of the campaign, the US Democratic Party elected Barack Obama as its candidate for president. Hillary Clinton accepted the party's decision and helped Barack during the presidential election.

Election campaign

In February 2008, Barack Obama arrived in Springfield, where he took part in a rally and publicly announced his participation in the presidential race. The main agenda of his election campaign was ending the military conflict in Iraq. He promised that as early as March 2009, not a single American military man would remain in Iraq if he were to win.

At one of the subsequent rallies, Obama uttered words for which he had to pay. He said that the American soldiers who died in Iraq gave their lives in vain. After this, Barack Obama's rating decreased, albeit slightly. He had to justify himself for a long time and prove that he meant something completely different.

The policies of the then US President George W. Bush were subject to significant criticism from Barack Obama. The presidential candidate blamed the Bush administration for the decline of public education, as well as increasing dependence on oil exports.

Presidential Race: Obama vs McCain

During the presidential election, Barack Obama relied on the common population of the country, which provided him with a majority of votes. Barack's main opponent was Republican John McCain, who focused on the middle class and wealthy Americans. On the decisive day - November 4, 2008, Obama received 52.9% of the vote and won the presidential election.

Already on January 20, 2009, the inauguration took place, at which Barack Obama officially took office as head of state. His wife and two children were present at the ceremony.

Activities as President of the United States

After taking office, Barack Obama began to fulfill his campaign promises. His administration introduced a number of important orders and initiatives in the first 100 days of his presidency. One of the priority areas for the new president was the establishment of international relations. During his first year as president, Obama made many working visits. Barack Obama's international policies brought geopolitical and economic benefits to the United States. He managed to establish partnerships with China, Russia and Cuba. Barak also tried to improve relations with Venezuela and Iran, but things did not get off the ground. Obama received the Nobel Peace Prize in 2009 for his services to peacekeeping.

Barack Obama's height is 1 meter 85 centimeters. While the height of the Dalai Lama is 1 meter 70 centimeters. Barack Obama's height is average, which allows him to feel comfortable when negotiating with world leaders.

The 44th President of the United States of America made a great contribution to the domestic politics of the state. With his help, the children's health insurance system was improved. The Obama administration has become concerned about issues of gender discrimination in pay. The state economy received additional funding from the banking sector and agricultural industry in the amount of more than $787 billion. The changes also affected the tax system. At the initiative of Barack Obama, taxes were reduced for entrepreneurs, trade unions and real estate buyers.

The legislative process for the withdrawal of American troops from Iraq dragged on, as there were many opponents of this initiative among government officials. This prevented Obama from fulfilling his campaign promise. The American contingent was withdrawn from Iraq much later than the deadline - in December 2011. This allowed the incumbent president to be successfully re-elected to a second presidential term. Mitt Romney, the Republican candidate, failed to beat Barack Obama.

However, according to Barak himself, not everything in his policy was positive. He considers the invasion of Libya to be his biggest mistake while running the United States. At the same time, he managed to achieve significant success in pursuing economic policy. Many of Obama's colleagues argue that it was thanks to the initiatives of the 44th President of the United States that the economic crisis, which could have developed into a new American depression, was painlessly overcome.

Family and personal life

Barack Obama lives in a happy marriage with his wife Michelle and has two daughters. He met his wife after graduating from Harvard. For a long time they worked together in a legal agency and were colleagues. Barack showed signs of attention to Michelle, but she did not notice him for a long time. According to Michelle, she looked at Barack from a different perspective when he gave a fiery speech to black teenagers.

After a year of dating, Barack and Michelle got married. This happened on October 3, 1992. After the wedding ceremony, the newlyweds went to Kenya to stay with relatives of Barack's father. Since 1998, the family began to have financial problems after the birth of their first daughter, Malia. This happened due to the fact that political activities did not bring significant income to Barack, and Michelle had to go on maternity leave. Michelle asked Barack to return to law, which would provide him with a high and stable income, but he only saw himself as a politician.

In 2001, the family almost broke up due to the birth of their second daughter, Sasha. Serious differences arose between Barack and Michelle as financial problems only worsened with the birth of their second child. According to Michelle's memoirs, their marriage was saved by their daughter Sasha, who fell ill with meningitis. The fight for the daughter’s life erased all differences between the spouses. And after Sasha’s miraculous recovery, Michelle became a faithful support for Barack and his political activities.

What does Barack Obama do after his presidency?

After the inauguration of Donald Trump, Obama was relieved of his post, which he held for 8 years. If you are wondering how old Barack Obama was at the end of his presidency, the answer is 55 years old. At his last press conference, he joked that he was going to sleep it off and also said that he would help disadvantaged children get an education. Barack and his family did not leave Washington, since his daughter Sasha is still continuing her studies at one of the Washington schools.

Barack Obama also continued the good tradition of traveling. However, now he visits not the diplomatic missions of various countries, but tourist resorts. This allows the presidential pension, which amounts to 240 thousand dollars annually. According to unconfirmed sources, Barack Obama is working on his memoirs, as this is an old tradition of all heads of the White House. Experts predict that his memoirs could become the best-selling of all time. The approximate amount that the 44th president can earn from the sale of his book is $30 million. By comparison, Bill Clinton earned only $15 million.

At the moment, the biography of Barack Obama, who is already 56 years old, is not yet over, as he continues to raise his daughters and do what he loves.

White House.

The Cabinet included former rivals in the primaries: Hillary Rodham Clinton as Secretary of State and Bill Richardson as head of the US Department of Commerce.

The next day, late in the evening, on the advice of constitutional lawyers, Obama in the White House, as a precaution, re-took the oath of state as head of state, due to the fact that the day before there was an error in reading the text of the oath established by the US Constitution: Chief Justice of the US Supreme Court Roberts mistakenly put the word “fairly” (eng. faithfully) after the words “to serve as President of the United States.”

First 100 days

Expectations

Actions

During his first week in office, Obama suspended military commissions at Guantanamo Bay and ordered the detention facility to be closed within a year, although he did not close it until the end of the term, changed rules for interrogation of terrorism suspects, ordered the Energy Department to raise fuel efficiency standards and allowed states to set emission standards are higher than federal ones, and also lifted the ban on federal funding of international organizations associated with abortion.

On January 29, 2009, the President signed a law increasing the opportunity to appeal cases of discrimination in the field of wages in court ( en:Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009). In February, a law was passed to stimulate the economy ( en:American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009).

Re-election, cabinet changes

In 2012, Obama ran for a second presidential term under the slogan “Forward, for America!” On November 6, 2012, Obama was re-elected president; the inauguration took place on January 20, 2013. In February 2013, Secretary of Defense L. Panetta was replaced by Charles Hagel, Secretary of the Treasury T. Geithner by J. Lew, and Secretary of State H. Clinton by J. Kerry. In April 2013, S. Jewell was appointed to replace Interior Minister K. Salazar, and in May, E. Moniz was appointed to replace Energy Minister S. Chu.

Economy

In May 2009, a law expanding the rights of credit card users was signed ( en:Credit CARD Act of 2009). In July 2010, a law was signed to tighten financial market regulation and strengthen protection for consumers of financial services ( en:Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act).

In December 2010, the Bush tax cuts were extended ( en:Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010).

In August 2011, Congress increased the national debt limit, cutting budget spending by $917 billion over 10 years and requiring a plan to cut spending by another $1.2 trillion over 10 years ( en:Budget Control Act of 2011). In September 2011, Obama presented Congress with a package of legislation to stimulate employment, including tax credits for job creators and investment ( en:American Jobs Act), and then unveiled a deficit reduction plan that included cuts to health care spending, operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the elimination of tax breaks for oil and gas companies and the wealthiest individuals.

Since the cost cutting plan required by legislation adopted in 2011 was not adopted, uniform cuts to most budget programs took effect in March 2013 ( en:Budget sequestration in 2013).

In October 2013, due to a conflict over the budget, the work of some federal institutions was suspended.

Human rights

In July 2009, the United States signed the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. However, in December 2012, the Senate rejected an Obama-backed proposal to ratify it. In October of the same year, a law was passed expanding the scope of protection from hate crimes to sexual minorities and people with disabilities ( en:Matthew Shepard Act). In August 2010, the differences in penalties for crystal cocaine, more common among blacks, and powder, more common among whites, were reduced ( en:Fair Sentencing Act). In December 2010, the United States became the latest UN member state to express support for the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples; A law was also passed to repeal the "Don't ask, don't tell" policy. In May 2012, Obama expressed personal support for same-sex marriage; In June 2012, the administration announced that it would not deport illegal immigrants with no criminal records who were brought to the United States as children under 16 and were educated in America or served in its armed forces.

On January 8, 2011, Obama signed a law that prohibits the use of US Department of Defense funds to transfer Guantanamo Bay prisoners to American territory. In addition, the document prohibits the transfer of prisoners from this prison to other countries, except in a very limited number of cases. The new law casts doubt on the possibility of closing the prison in the near future.

Education

In March 2010, legislation was passed increasing the maximum amount of federal grants for needy students ( en:Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act).

Foreign policy, military actions

In December 2009, a decision was announced to increase the contingent of American troops in Afghanistan by 30 thousand.

On April 8, 2010, an agreement was signed with Russia on the reduction of strategic offensive weapons in Prague (approved by the Senate in December).

In May 2010, a law was passed requiring the State Department to provide detailed information on press freedom in annual reports on human rights in countries around the world ( en:Daniel Pearl Freedom of the Press Act).

On September 1, 2010, Obama announced the end of US military operations in Iraq; however, about 50,000 American troops remained in the country.

From March to October 2011, the United States participated in the military operation of a group of countries in Libya.

On May 2, 2011, Osama bin Laden was killed in Pakistan.

In October 2011, the withdrawal of US troops from Iraq by the end of the year was announced, and on December 11 of the same year, a ceremony was held to formally end the operation of US troops.

In December 2012, the Magnitsky Law was adopted in relation to Russia, and a normal trade relations regime was introduced in relation to Russia and Moldova.

In 2013, the Snowden scandal caused friction between Moscow and Washington.

Since March 2014, a series of sanctions have been introduced against Russia due to the situation in Ukraine. After the introduction of sanctions, the end of the “reset” was announced.

On July 14, 2015, an agreement on the Iranian nuclear program (INP) was concluded in Vienna. On January 16, 2016, the ILP plan came into effect.

On November 15-18, 2016, Barack Obama took his last trip abroad as President of the United States.

Healthcare, ecology

Contrary to what was stated in 2008, the Obama administration did not seek an extension of the Kyoto Protocol. According to Republican Senator Inhofe, Obama made it clear to delegates at the 2011 UN Climate Change Conference that he was ignoring them.

In June 2009, a tobacco control law was passed ( en:Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act).

In March 2010, despite opposition from some House Democrats and Republicans, a health care reform bill was passed aimed at increasing health insurance coverage. en:Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, amendments were made in the form en:Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010). After a series of lawsuits, parts of the reform were overturned by the Supreme Court in 2012 ( en:National Federation of Independent Business v. Sebelius).

In April 2010, the largest environmental disaster in US history occurred. An explosion occurred on a large oil platform, killing 11 people. They were able to stop the oil leak only three months later, when 4.9 million barrels of oil had already leaked into the water.

In December 2010, a new law was signed regulating children's nutrition in schools ( en:Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010). In January 2011, a law was signed expanding the state's powers to inspect food safety ( en:Food Safety and Modernization Act).

In December 2011, Obama supported the FDA's controversial decision by Secretary of Health C. Sebelius to ban the sale of emergency contraceptive pills to girls under 17 in pharmacies. In 2013, however, the age limit was lowered to 15 years with the support of the president.

In August 2012, the Obama administration introduced new, more stringent requirements to reduce vehicle fuel consumption. In 2013, the President's Climate Action Plan was published.

Judicial system, fight against crime

In 2009, Obama nominated Sonia Sotomayor for Supreme Court Justice to replace the resigned David Souter, who had been nominated by Bush Sr. before his appointment. The Senate confirmed Sotomayor's nomination. In April 2010, Supreme Court Judge J. Stevens announced his upcoming resignation; in May, Obama nominated Elena Kagan to replace him, who was confirmed by the Senate in August.

On December 14, 2012, one of the most notorious crimes in recent US history occurred. 20-year-old Adam Lanza opened fire at an elementary school in Newtown, Connecticut. 20 children aged 5 to 10 years and six adults died. Addressing the nation in connection with this crime, Obama could not hold back his tears. "Every American parent felt a terrible weight in their hearts," he said and promised to do everything possible to prevent such tragedies.

In January 2013, Obama put forward an agenda for the legislative and executive branches to tighten gun control. However, in April, the Senate rejected one of the main measures proposed by Obama - eliminating the ability to purchase guns without verifying the buyer's identity.

On April 15, 2013, a terrorist attack took place at the finish line of the Boston Marathon, killing three people and injuring 264. This was the first terrorist attack on US soil since September 11, 2001.

On January 5, 2016, Barack Obama announced stricter rules for gun sales, bypassing the US Congress.

Criticism

Former independent US presidential candidate Ralph Nader called Barack Obama a war criminal, criticizing his international policies. He made this statement in an interview with Politico. “The sovereignty of other countries means nothing to him. Its drones can kill anyone, as is the case in Pakistan, Afghanistan and Yemen, for example. This is a war crime and he must be brought to justice," Nader said.

In June 2013, former CIA and NSA employee Edward Snowden provided several major American newspapers with data on mass surveillance by the US and British intelligence agencies of Internet users, as well as politicians and officials. As a result, Snowden asked for political asylum in Russia.

See also

• Sanctions in connection with the Ukrainian events of 2014

Notes

1. Mooney, Brian C.. Inaugural fund-raising exceeds $53m , The Boston Globe(January 30, 2009). Retrieved February 1, 2009.
2. Chernus, Ira. The First Hundred Days or the Last Hundred Days? (undefined) . The LA Progressive(December 16, 2008). Retrieved January 18, 2009. Archived March 28, 2012.
3. Reid, Tim. Barack Obama lays plans to deaden expectation after election victory, The Times (November 1, 2008). Retrieved January 18, 2009.
4. Obama's first 100 days - Jan. 20, 2009
5. Counter terror with justice: a checklist for the next US president
6. Mixed Messages: Counter Terror and Human Rights - President Obama’s first 100 days
7. Obama Issues Directive to Shut Down Guantánamo, NY Times (January 21, 2009).
8. Closure Of Guantanamo Detention Facilities (undefined) . Whitehouse.gov (January 22, 2009). Retrieved January 27, 2009. Archived March 28, 2012.
9. Obama signs order to close Guantanamo in a year (undefined) . The Washington Times (January 22, 2009). Retrieved March 19, 2010. Archived March 28, 2012.
10. Obama Reverses Key Bush Security Policies, New York Times, January 22, 2009
11. From Peril to Progress (undefined) . whitehouse.gov. White House (January 26, 2009). Retrieved January 26, 2009. Archived March 28, 2012.
12. Obama ends funding ban for abortion groups abroad (undefined) . Retrieved January 23, 2009. Archived March 28, 2012.
13. Obama reverses Bush abortion-funds policy January 23, 2009
14. Living Within Our Means and Investing in the Future. The President’s Plan for Economic Growth and Deficit Reduction, 2011 (English)