Obama is officially from everywhere, and it turns out there's an improbable genealogical link between Obama and Biden:
Both US presidential hopeful Barack Obama and running mate Joseph Biden are descended from shoemakers who emigrated from Ireland within five weeks of each other, a researcher said Friday.
Here's the researcher's story and documentary images. It turns out:
• Biden's grandfather was orphaned at an early age.
• Biden's great-grandfather was a blind musician.
• Biden's shoemaking Irish ancestors arrived in New York in April of 1849.
• Obama's shoemaking Irish ancestors arrived in New York in May of 1849.
• The rest of Biden's family came to America in 1850.
• The rest of Obama's family came to America in 1850.
• Biden's great-grandmother was named Catherine who had a three-legged cat named Higgins who in 1869 saved her from a fire by waking her in the middle of the night.
• Obama's great-grandmother was named Catherine who had a three-legged cat named Higgins who in 1869 saved her from a fire by waking her in the middle of the night.
Only 7 and 8 are speculative, but both their great-grandmothers almost definitely thought kittens were cute, assuming they had kittens in Ireland back then.
Still it's sort of the Lincoln-Kennedy thing all over again, isn't it?