Gerald Osmenaj
Ms. Grayman
9th Grade English
26 April 2012
Barack Obama: “Yes we can”
“Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We are the change that we seek” – Barack Obama. Barack Obama married Michelle Obama and had two daughters with her. He was elected in 2008 and he is the 44th president of America. Barack Obama is a leader because he donated money to charity organizations, improved the economy of the US by decreasing the unemployment rate, ended the war in Iraq, and made speeches that affected people. President Barack Obama was born in August 4, 1961 in Honolulu as Barack Hussein Obama. His father’s name is Barack Obama Sr. and his mother’s name is Ann Dunhan. In 1967 him and his family moved to Indonesia and at the age of 10 his mother sent him back to live with his grandparents to get a better education (Bio. True Story). His father left him and his mom to study at Harvard school. Then his mother went to college and her parents took care of Barack Obama. Barack’s parents divorced in 1964. In 1982 his father died in a car accident. Ann Dunhan died in 1995 of ovarian cancer. One day before the President elections, his grandmother died (Barack Obama Timeline). Barack Obama is a leader because he donated money to charity organizations. Obama earned the Nobel Peace Prize and he donated the money from it and some of his own money to charity to help other people. In 2007 President Barack Obama gave $240,000 and his Nobel Peace Prize which was about $1,400,000 to charity foundations (Look to the Stars). This shows Obama is a leader because he donated a lot of his own money for people that need it. If he did not show empathy by donating money, he wouldn’t be called a leader. Another reason Barack Obama is a leader is for his improvement of the economy by decreasing the unemployment rate. In 2008, when President Obama came to power the unemployment rate was very high and during his years of presidency he decreased that rate. According to Mike Maybay, Barack Obama decreased the unemployment rate in Michigan from 10.5% to 8.5% and in Ohio from 8.8% to 7.5%. He also decreased the rate in Florida from 10.7% to 9% and in Nevada from 13.6% to 12% (Abc6News). This depicts our president is a leader because he managed the economy pretty well. If the unemployment rate continued to be high as before, people wouldn’t see him as a good leader. President Obama’s leadership is shown in him bringing the war in Iraq to an end. Before President Barack Obama came to power many troops were risking their lives in Iraq, but again during his years of presidency, he helped many soldiers return back and bring the war in Iraq to an end and close many bases in Iraq. Barack Obama says, “We’ve closed about 70 bases and we’ve moved roughly 100,000 soldiers and civilians since September of this year” (ABC News). This shows Barack Obama is a leader because he helped to end a war and save people’s lives. If he did not respond to this situation of war, many people might have been killed and this would not make him a good leader. Barack Obama is also a leader because he gave many speeches that affected people. He made a speech in 2012 about the State of the Union that influenced people in a good way. Jimb says, “A speech that makes me proud that Obama is our President. Now ALL of us should come together as Americans to implement and succeed in the vital missions before us” (The Washington Post, POLITICS). This shows Barack Obama’s speech affected people because as Jimb said, he is proud of our President
