Fact check: Obama lived in Indonesia from the ages of 6 to ten. From age 10 on, he grew up in Hawaii with his American grandparents where he attended a prep school on a scholarship. (Transcript, Oprah Winfrey show on which Obama and his wife Michelle were guests, January 19, 2005, available on Lexis.com)
WINFREY: At age 10, Barack moved back to Hawaii to live with his white grandparents and to attend a prestigious school.
LA Times, March 13, 2005, (Lexis.com): "[His mother] raised her son in Indonesia for four years, then sent him at age 10 to live with her parents, who now lived in Hawaii
Time Magazine, Nov. 15, 2004, (Lexis.com): "[H]e grew up in Honolulu except from ages 6 to 10, when he and his mother lived in Indonesia. His father, though a potent symbol in his childhood, left when Obama was 2."
As an aside, here's more from the 2005 Oprah show, with what I think are some truisms about politics and Obama from Michelle:
Mrs. OBAMA: And I think that that's one of the things that I've tried to do when I've gone around to campaign for him, is just to sort of tamp down expectations, because that's one of the things we do with our politicians. We lift them up. We make them heroes. Then we slash them and burn them the minute they...
...Mrs. OBAMA: And the whole point of Barack's approach in politics generally is that we're in a very complicated, diverse country, and if we're going to do this together, it requires all of us to compromise. And it's not just compromise when you think you're right all the time, like the other guy is supposed to compromise, and that goes for both sides, liberals, conservatives. We don't want to give an inch. So the minute Barack has to make a compromise, we're gonna wait to see how people react.
On Obama's messiness:
Mrs. OBAMA: Barack is absolutely the messiest person in the household. We call his office the hole.
Sen. OBAMA: It wasn't that bad.
Mrs. OBAMA: You had dirty clothes on top of the basket this morning. And I'm just like, `There's a basket with a lid. Lift it up, put it in.'
On whether he'll run for President:
WINFREY: I have to ask you this. Do you think you'll run for president?... Is it even on your radar screen?
Sen. OBAMA: You know, really--and people have asked me this, and I'm sincere when I say it's not on my radar screen simply because I've been in politics long enough to know that there are so many variables. So many things can happen, so many things can change and, you know, ultimately what I want to do is to be part of this conversation, and whether I'm in politics or not, I think I can be part of this conversation, about how we live up to our values as Americans. How do we affirm what's best in this country and how do we heal the wounds of the tragedies of our history? And those are the--that's what I'm interested in doing.
Back to the Time Magazine article from Nov. 2004, an interesting description of Obama's political career:
In 1996 Obama ran for state senate and won. Impatient, he leaped again in 2000, this time challenging four-term U.S. Congressman Bobby Rush. A former Black Panther, Rush ridiculed Obama as a Harvard-educated carpetbagger. Obama got hammered, losing 2 to 1. This year Obama chose a better race--for an open Senate seat. Then he got lucky. In the primary, his millionaire opponent, Blair Hull, was undone by media revelations that his ex-wife had sought a restraining order against him. In the general election, Republican Jack Ryan withdrew after reporters revealed that his ex-wife had complained that he took her to sex clubs. Finally, the state's straggling Republican Party gifted Obama with Keyes as an opponent. Though a powerful speaker, Keyes alienated even conservatives by calling homosexuality "selfish hedonism" and engaging in other such hysterics.
With no serious competition, Obama was free to make friends in the Senate early. His campaign has donated nearly $ 400,000 to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and state parties with competitive races. The favors will cushion his landing in Washington, as will the affection of many veteran pols. "Obama could be President. There's nothing to stop him," says former Virginia Governor L. Douglas Wilder.
The Time article ends with:
Richard Durbin, the senior Senator from Illinois, counsels Obama to follow the model of Hillary Clinton. As a national figure entering the Senate with more buzz than clout, Clinton did her homework, kept her head down and stayed in tireless contact with her New York constituents. Gradually, her political capital rose. Obama says he plans to ask for her advice. Depending on how the conversation goes, maybe they could wager on the chances of them ever running together for the White House.
Obama on his 2000 Congressional loss to Bobby Rush (CNN, 10/24/04, Lexis.com):
OBAMA: You know, the most important thing - the - I remember on election day, we had a tough race. It was against Bobby Rush, this current congressman, sitting congressman here.
And I was feeling impatient and feeling like, you know, it was my time. And we had had a terrible race. I mean, all kinds of bad things had - everything that could go wrong in that race went wrong.
So I'm feeling pretty confident on election day, getting good vibes. I stand - I'm saying at the polling places and greeting voters as they're coming in. And most of them are senior citizens because it's mid day. And almost every one of them would come up and they'd shake my hand.
...And they'd pat me on the shoulder and say, "You are just such a fine young man. You are going to be wonderful some day, but I'm voting for Rush because it's not your turn."
And they were right. The community has its own wisdom. Politics, like life, is often times a matter of working hard, pressing forward, but recognizing that timing and opportunity is not going to be determined by you.
What the loss taught me was not to be so much on my time table, and think more about the community's time table.
Same interview, Obama touts his midwestern roots:
OBAMA: So yes, so I lived in Jakarta when I was - from the age of six to 10. But you know, my mother was from Kansas. And my grandparents, who helped raised me, were from Kansas. And so, what's interesting is how comfortable I feel in the Midwest, especially when I travel to small towns and rural areas in Illinois, the people there, the food they eat, their sense of humor, their stoicism, their lack of pretense, all of that very much is familiar to me because it reminds me of what I grew up with.
