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BARACK OBAMA MAKES IT OFFICIAL: Senator takes first step in making himself eligible for 2008 presidential run.
*No longer beating around the bush about his intentions in Nov. 2008, Sen. Barack Obama has taken the first official step in entering the presidential race by filing papers Tuesday that will allow him to raise money and hire staff for his campaign.
According to Reuters, the 45-year-old freshman star from Illinois will make an official announcement about his candidacy in his hometown of Chicago on February 10.
"Our leaders in Washington seem incapable of working together in a practical, common sense way. Politics has become so bitter and partisan, so gummed up by money and influence, that we can't tackle the big problems that demand solutions," Obama said in a video message announcing his bid. "We have to change our politics, and come together around our common interests and concerns as Americans."
Obama is the fifth Democrat to announce plans for a 2008 run, and would become the first black president in U.S. history if elected. The Democrat said he would spend the next few weeks listening to voters and learning about "the role that a presidential campaign might play in bringing our country together."
"A change in our politics can only come from you; from people across our country who believe there's a better way and are willing to work for it," he said.
Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York, who has not said whether she will try to become the nation’s first woman president, has promised an announcement soon.
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