Victory in the House!

Jan 31st, 2007 4:00 PM EST
By Virginia Simmons

Members of the U.S. House of Representatives just voted 286-140 to pass the 2007 continuing resolution!!

If the bill also passes in the Senate before Feb. 14 then instead of AIDS, malaria, tuberculosis and refugee programs receiving no increases from 2006 to 2007, they will receive an increase of $1.45 billion. The difference will add up to hundreds of thousands of lives.

Thank you to those in the House who voted to fully fund the programs that are working to end extreme poverty. We’ll post their names here shortly.

UPDATE: The 2007 CR vote roll call is below.

—- NOT VOTING 9 —

Alexander
Buyer
Davis, Jo Ann
Gilchrest
Hastert
Higgins
McDermott
Norwood
Paul

House is Voting Now

Jan 31st, 2007 3:30 PM EST
By Virginia Simmons

House members are voting on the 2007 continuing resolution as I type.

Stay tuned for the results…

Live House Debate on $1.45 Billion for 2007

Jan 31st, 2007 2:30 PM EST
By Virginia Simmons

The $1.45 billion increase for extreme poverty funding in 2007 (as part of the continuing resolution) is currently being debated on the House floor. You can watch it live online on C-Span here.

The vote will follow.

(NOTE: After further scrubbing of the numbers we found $1.45 billion in extreme poverty funding in this bill, instead of the $1.3 billion we posted on the blog yesterday. The figure, which includes increases for AIDS, malaria, tuberculosis and refugee programs in 2007, went beyond both our expectations and initial assessment.)

Bono Book Booked for April 2007

Jan 31st, 2007 9:30 AM EST
By Virginia Simmons

Bono is set to release a new book titled On The Move: A Speech By Bono, in April of this year. The book will include the keynote address Bono gave at a White House Prayer Breakfast Address in 2005 as well striking photos he took in Ethiopia during his first visit to the continent in 1985.

A quote from On The Move:

“In Africa, 150,000 lives are lost every month. A tsunami every month. And it’s a completely avoidable catastrophe. I truly believe that when the history books are written, our age will be remembered for three things: the war on terror, the digital revolution, and what we did—or did not to—to put the fire out in Africa.”

The idea for the book came from David Moberg a Sr. VP and Publisher for Thomas Nelson after he heard the speech at the White House in ‘05. All proceeds will go to the ONE Campaign.

We’ll keep you posted here at the ONE Blog with more updates.

Breaking News: 1.3 Billion More Dollars to Fight Global Poverty!

Jan 30th, 2007 12:30 PM EST
By Virginia Simmons

Excellent news about the continuing resolution (which, as those who
follow the ONE Blog know, was set to leave U.S. funding at 2006 levels
for all of 2007):

A bill was filed last night asking for a $1.3 billion increase in AIDS,
malaria and tuberculosis funding for 2007 - a full $300 million more than
the $1 billion increase ONE members urged for over the last two months.
If the bill passes, AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis funding would be $4.5
billion in 2007.

Money and increases are extremely tight in the 2007 budget, and without
pressure from this community - without ONE members’ over 200,000
letters, emails, phone calls and faxes - it’s very realistic that that
this funding never would not have been recovered. At a critical moment,
however, ONE members came together and showed our representatives that
Americans don’t just care about extreme poverty, but we pay attention
and we act. Without exaggeration, your actions could end up saving
hundreds of thousands of lives in the world’s poorest countries.

Nothing is a done deal until the bill passes both houses of Congress. A
House vote is scheduled for tomorrow and a Senate vote is set for February
5. We will keep you posted on the ONE Blog on vote times and outcomes.

ONE Music: The North

Jan 30th, 2007 11:00 AM EST
By Virginia Simmons

Members of The North have been big supporters of ONE for years. Their
Louisville, Kentucky, solid American rock sound comes to ONE members
today at the request of Kentucky ONE Field Organizer, and long-time The
North fan, Kim Smith.

Listen to “New Fixation,” and all the ONE Music, on the ONE Podcast
page.

Below a note from Douglas Lucas of The North:

“For years, the suffering in Africa has been a distant voice that has
been ignored by many. But now thanks to the ONE Campaign, and the coming
together of like-minded individuals, even the smallest voice matters. I
am thankful to be one of those voices. Together as ONE we have a hope
for tomorrow.”

-Douglas Lucas, The North
http://www.myspace.com/thenorth

CARE Employee Geoffrey Chege Killed in Kenya

Jan 29th, 2007 4:00 PM EST
By Virginia Simmons

On Saturday night, Geoffrey Chege, the Regional Director of ONE Partner
CARE International, was shot and killed in Nairobi, Kenya. He was returning from a prayer meeting with his wife, who we understand, was not hurt.

“A 25-year veteran of CARE, Geoffrey Chege, was killed Saturday night in
Nairobi during a car jacking attempt. He would have turned 57 in March,” a CARE statement said.

Our thoughts and prayers are with Mr. Chege’s family and friends.

Slim Jim Phantom Rocks LA for ONE

Jan 29th, 2007 2:00 PM EST
By Stephanie Handler, ONE Regional Field Organizer

Cat Club owner Slim Jim Phantom hosted a rockin’ awareness event Thursday night, bringing together inspiring bands with messages about extreme poverty and global AIDS. Volunteers Amy, Page and Beth took part in creating a friendly and informative environment, welcoming new members to the ONE Campaign.

Band members and fans sported the ONE t-shirt including Jim’s ten-year old daughter, who fashioned the ONE shirt as a dress! Thanks to all that came out to support the ONE awareness event at the Cat Club. Special thanks to former Stray Cat Jim Phantom and his family for being enthusiastic ONE supporters!

(pictured above: Amy Quinn, ONE Volunteer, Stephanie Handler, ONE Field Organizer and Slim Jim Phantom, Cat Club owner)

Bitter Cold on the ONE Campaign Trail

Jan 29th, 2007 11:30 AM EST
By matthew.bartlett

Saturday morning was a cold one here in New Hampshire. I was up early as Mayor Rudy Giuliani was in town to give a speech in Manchester and greet some Granite State voters.

In the back room of a downtown theatre, I waited for my opportunity to speak with the mayor and let him know that when he comes to New Hampshire, he should be talking about global poverty and disease.

While I was waiting in the room, I ran into a few friends and ONE supporters at the event. Everyone was still talking about the president’s State of the Union speech and what they were doing to ensure that the president’s words become a reality. It seems that our issues and our message is really getting through to a lot of people here in the state.

Then the mayor walked in the room. He was surrounded by security, press and NH voters of all ages. When he finally made his way over to me, I was able to briefly speak with him and talk about what the ONE Campaign means and how we as Americans want more action to fight AIDS and poverty in the developing world. The mayor also brought up the State of the Union and when I gave him our ONE band, he put it on immediately!

I was proud to use my voice on behalf of the billion people that do not have a voice in the world. Here in New Hampshire, primary season has started much earlier than ever before, but by organizing and coming together as ONE, I am confident that we will make sure that the next President of the United States knows that we can and will make poverty history.

So put your white band on, bundle up, and speak out!

The IMF Slept Here

Jan 29th, 2007 11:00 AM EST
By matthew.bartlett

On Friday I went to the North Country of New Hampshire to a place called Bretton Woods. At Bretton Woods, in 1944 at the Mount Washington Hotel, the leaders of the free world gathered for a huge international conference on global economic stability.

After the greatest generation fought long and hard in the Second World War, they realized that poverty and disease in the world were not in country’s interest. So they held a conference at this hotel and created the IMF and the World Bank. These institutions, still called the Bretton Woods Institutions, were not designed to create economic prosperity, so much as they were a call for economic stability and security around the free world.

It is now up to us, the next great generation, to renew and realize the promise of a better world for all. An additional one percent of our money, spent wisely in effective ways like PEPFAR, the UN Global Fund and the Millennium Challenge, will help to reverse the spread of AIDS and make extreme poverty history. It will help transform a continent, and save the lives of millions.

Our efforts with ONE are rooted in science and in medicine; we are rooted in good will and in patriotism. But it is also important to recognize that our efforts are also rooted in history. It is important to look back and recognize the sacrifice that other generations made, and learn from the wise lessons they have passed on to us.

You can read from the plaques outside the Gold Room at the Mount Washington Hotel where the historic documents were signed, and American global leadership was proven to the world.

From Bretton Woods, NH, to Africa, and from the Greatest Generation, on to our generation, the promise of a better world lives on. We can do this…we are going to do this. Write letters to Congress, call down to DC, send an email to your elected leader. Prove what being an American is to the world.