The caucus just ended. 166 delegates showed up, many of them sporting ONE bands. There was a lot of excitement in the air. The final count was close with 17 delegates going to Obama and 16 to Clinton.

Jessica Vandenberg ran the Caesar’s Palace caucus and wore a ONE t-shirt. Since CNN was covering this particular caucus it was all over television (according to reports from my friends).

With a little national media for ONE, I am going to call this caucus location a success for ONE.

-Josh Peck

I am in Las Vegas, Nevada at Caesar’s palace, the site of one of the (recently contested) Democratic Party Caucus locations. The caucus is being setup as I type.

I stopped by Cashman Convention Center in Las Vegas yesterday afternoon which is the Results Reporting Headquarters. You can see table after empty table waiting for the day to begin. ONE Vote ’08 had a strong presence with banners and T-shirt clad volunteers all over the place. ONE Vote ’08 is also providing water for all the political reporters. The media should certainly know we’re here.

Now I am waiting for the first caucus-goers to arrive at Caesar’s Palace. The setup is a lot more modest, just a couple hundred people are expected (though I am not sure anyone really knows). We hope to see a few ONE members representing the fight against extreme poverty.

-Josh Peck

Tune to FireDogLake.com tomorrow for a live chat with Grameen Bank founder Muhammad Yunus.

“Mr. Yunus will be here at FDL to chat live with everyone regarding his new book, Creating a World Without Poverty, from 6 to 8 pm ET (3 to 5 pm PT).”

-Virginia Simmons

Nevada will be holding its first ever early caucus tomorrow morning. This is a chance for all Nevadans to play a crucial role in selecting the next president of the United States.

It is also a great time for everyone in the Silver State (and the rest of us for that matter) to look over what each candidate’s plan is for fighting extreme poverty and global disease. You can find what they have to say on the ONE Vote ’08 On the Record site.

Also, if you are going to be caucusing tomorrow but don’t know where to go, you can find your caucus location on:

• The Nevada Secretary of State’s page
• The Republican caucus page
• The Democratic caucus page

Have fun caucusing!

Gov. Huckabee held a campaign rally at Clemson University yesterday and I met up with some great ONE members to lend our voice to the world’s bottom billion people.

During the rally, Gov. Huckabee played bass with a local band, and also had Chuck Norris and Ric Flair with him to campaign. Some of us, including Clemson student Emily Burchfield who went to the ONE Power 100 Summit – were in our ONE shirts in hopes that Gov. Huckabee would see us.

After the rally we snuck out by the campaign bus to try and talk with Gov. Huckabee. Just before they got on the bus, ONE member Chip was able to snap a quick photo with Chuck Norris and Emily spoke with Gov. Huckabee about ONE and US efforts to fight global AIDS. He thanked her for her work with ONE.

As we were leaving, we ran into FOX New Chief Political Correspondent, “Campaign” Carl Cameron – who always wears his ONE band on the campaign trail and even cut a promo for our ONE Student/ONE Vote event back in November. Check it out:

Chip and Emily thanked Carl for wearing his ONE band and told him about the work of ONE at Clemson.

At Clemson, just like to many other colleges and universities all over America, students like Chip and Emily are organizing and using their voice and talents to find ways to spread the word about ONE and let our leaders know that our generation can…and will, make poverty history.

-Matthew Bartlett

Sen. McCain campaigned in Greenville and Spartanburg, SC, on Wednesday and I caught up with him at a few stops with some ONE members.

After a town hall meeting, ONE member Bianca was able to talk with Sen. McCain. As soon as she approached him he instantly recognized her shirt and told her how much he loves ONE. Bianca was able to thank him for his efforts to reform the Farm Bill to allow poor African farmers a chance to bring their goods to market. Sen. McCain thanked her and Cindy McCain told Bianca that she was trying to point her out to the senator during the town hall.

Sen. McCain had a few more stops in South Carolina and I hear that he ran into another group of ONE members later on in the night. Just one more event, town hall, and candidate engagement, that is making ONE a real force here in the Palmetto State.

-Matthew Bartlett

On Tuesday I was in Lexington, SC with Gov. Mike Huckabee to watch the results of the Michigan Primary come in.

Gov. Huckabee gave a short stump speech and I was there with a few other ONE members to make sure that he remembered the poorest of the poor while campaigning in the first-in-the-south SC Primary.

Just as the Gov. was walking out the door, I got a few seconds to talk with him and thanked him for his strong endorsement of PEPFAR and slipped him a ONE band.

There were many people packed into the small restaurant, but I know that Gov. Huckabee will come across many more ONE members hitting the trail in South Carolina and across the nation to make sure that our next president knows that saving lives in Africa is a priority!

-Matthew Bartlett

Dan Robinson, ONE member, mountaineer and British navy pilot, has begun his climb up Mt. Aconcagua. This is the first peak of seven that he will climb in the name of ONE. As he climbs the Seven Summits, he’s planting a ONE flag on the top of each. Read his almost daily updates at www.dan-robinson.com.

-Chandler Smith

Thursday, January 17, 2008

15-16th Jan…Casa de Piedra to Plaza Argentina (Base Camp)

Hey guys. Managed to get some internet access but it is very slow and very expensive so I’ll combine the last two days. Yesterday we moved from Casa de Piedra to Base Camp at Plaza Argentina. It was a climb of over 3000ft in elevation and around 8 miles. The climb took just over 6 hours and upon arriving at base camp, it was the first time that I really noticed the affects of altitude. Base camp itself is like something out of a Star Wars movie as it is a very dry, rocky environment surrounded by huge mountains including Aconcagua and its Polish Glacier. I woke up this morning with a mild headache, sore throat and a nose bleed that have stayed with me throughout the day. Other than that I feel okay! I look up at the summit of Aconcagua and sometimes I dare to imagine myself raising the ONE campaign banner at the top. It is a very long way and there are lenticular clouds sitting menacingly on the summit. An indication of very high winds that sometimes can range from 100-200mph. I have a lot of work ahead.

Thought for the day:

Our generations challenge is to help the poorest of the poor to escape the misery of extreme poverty so that they can begin their own ascent up the ladder of economic development. The end of poverty, in this sense, is not only the end of extreme suffering but also the beginning of economic progress and of the hope and security that accompany economic development.

See you all soon.

-Dan Robinson