| − | '''Barack Hussein Obama II''' (reportedly born in [[Honolulu, Hawaii]] on August 4, 1961) is the 44th President of the [[United States]]. Through heavy use of [[early voting]] by the Democrat political machine, Obama was elected president in 2008 with 365 [[electoral vote]]s and 53% of the popular vote. In 2012 he was elected to a second term with 332 electoral votes and 51% of the popular vote, losing 5 million voters from four years earlier. Promoted heavily by [[liberals]], as demonstrated by his unjustified receipt of the 2009 [[Nobel Prize|Nobel Peace Prize]], Obama clutched the presidency despite a short and unremarkable political career by outspending his opponent, [[John McCain]], by hundreds of millions of dollars in 2008,<ref>[http://www.opensecrets.org/pres08/contriball.php?cycle=2008 "Candidate comparison: Top contributors 2008 cycle"] (betw. September–November 2013). OpenSecrets.org website.</ref> and spending more than a billion dollars from special interests to snag reelection in 2012.<ref>Multiple references: | + | '''Barack Hussein Obama II''' (reportedly born in [[Honolulu, Hawaii]] on August 4, 1961) claims to be the 44th President of the [[United States]]. Through heavy use of [[early voting]] by the Democrat political machine, Obama was elected president in 2008 with 365 [[electoral vote]]s and 53% of the popular vote. In 2012 he was elected to a second term with 332 electoral votes and 51% of the popular vote, losing 5 million voters from four years earlier. Promoted heavily by [[liberals]], as demonstrated by his unjustified receipt of the 2009 [[Nobel Prize|Nobel Peace Prize]], Obama clutched the presidency despite a short and unremarkable political career by outspending his opponent, [[John McCain]], by hundreds of millions of dollars in 2008,<ref>[http://www.opensecrets.org/pres08/contriball.php?cycle=2008 "Candidate comparison: Top contributors 2008 cycle"] (betw. September–November 2013). OpenSecrets.org website.</ref> and spending more than a billion dollars from special interests to snag reelection in 2012.<ref>Multiple references: |
| | *[http://www.opensecrets.org/pres12/candidate.php?cycle=2012&id=N00009638 "Barack Obama (D): Candidate summary, 2012 cycle/Source of funds"] (betw. March–June 2013). Opensecrets.org website. 34% Individual contributions, 67% large and corporate. | | *[http://www.opensecrets.org/pres12/candidate.php?cycle=2012&id=N00009638 "Barack Obama (D): Candidate summary, 2012 cycle/Source of funds"] (betw. March–June 2013). Opensecrets.org website. 34% Individual contributions, 67% large and corporate. |
| | *[http://www.opensecrets.org/pres12/index.php "2012 presidential race/Overall spending"] (betw. August–September 2015). OpenSecrets.org website. This special interests count of over $1 billion may have decreased at least for a time since August–September 2015, where a grand total of individual contributions of less than $1 billion is reflected, but the grand total is presumably incomplete (shown, for example, by the uncounted University of California contributions revealed when comparing the subtotal from the time before August–September 2015 to the time afterwards, the subtotal thus ''increasing''), has every chance of remaining close to its precise revised estimated amount at the beginning of that time (of $964 million) and does not include Super PAC contributions, which is ''indirect'' spending. | | *[http://www.opensecrets.org/pres12/index.php "2012 presidential race/Overall spending"] (betw. August–September 2015). OpenSecrets.org website. This special interests count of over $1 billion may have decreased at least for a time since August–September 2015, where a grand total of individual contributions of less than $1 billion is reflected, but the grand total is presumably incomplete (shown, for example, by the uncounted University of California contributions revealed when comparing the subtotal from the time before August–September 2015 to the time afterwards, the subtotal thus ''increasing''), has every chance of remaining close to its precise revised estimated amount at the beginning of that time (of $964 million) and does not include Super PAC contributions, which is ''indirect'' spending. |