Speeches of Barack Obama Barack Obama's greatest speeches selected and introduced by columnist E.J. Dionne and MSNBC host Joy-Ann Reid was published by Bloomsbury Publishing. The keynote address at the 2004 Democratic National Convention (DNC) was given by then Illinois State Senator, United States Senate candidate, and future President Barack Obama on the night of Tuesday, July 27, 2004. His unexpected landslide victory in the March 2004 Illinois U.S. Senate Democratic primary had made him overnight a rising star within the national Democratic Party, started speculation about a presidential future, and led to the reissue of his memoir, "Dreams from My Father". His convention
Barack Obama election, Obama won with 70% of the vote. Obama was sworn in as a senator on January 3, 2005, becoming the only Senate member of the Congressional Black Caucus. "CQ Weekly" characterized him as a "loyal Democrat" based on analysis of all Senate votes from 2005 to 2007. Obama announced on November 13, 2008, that he would resign his Senate seat on November 16, 2008, before the start of the lame-duck session, to focus on his transition period for the presidency. A photo has emerged of then-Senator Obama standing with controversial Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan during a 2005