From humble beginnings and a nontraditional upbringing, Barack Obama worked his way through law school and then onto Chicago's political scene. After serving in the state legislature and one term in the Senate, Obama became the first African American president elected in the United States. His mettle would immediately be tested as he inherited a country at war, with terror. This ongoing conflict seems to have no end in sight. Read about the president's actions to defeat the terror organizations that threaten America's safety. Quotes from the two-term president himself bring readers into the Situation Room, where matters of life and death are decided.