Some highlights:

* Three in four voters (77%) agree that the Unites States has a moral obligation to address problems like disease, hunger and lack of economic opportunity in the poorest countries because it was built on a solid foundation of faith that teaches us to help others. When millions
of children around the world are dying from preventable diseases and hunger, 79% of Republicans agree that we have a moral obligation to do what we can to help.

* Eight in ten Republicans (80%) agree that the next President should keep the commitments made by President Bush to prevent and fight the spread of AIDS in Africa.

* The poll found that Mitt Romney leads among the Republican Presidential candidates with 35% of the vote, followed by Rudy Giuliani (12%), Fred Thompson (11%) and Mike Huckabee (11%). Another 10% of voters are undecided.

Read through the full poll’s findings, plus our poll of NH Republican and Democratic voters, at one.org/polls.

Some highlights:

*More than nine in ten Iowa Democrats (93%) agree it is in keeping with the country’s values and history of compassion to lead an effort to solve some of the most serious problems facing the world’s poorest people. The ONE Poll–Iowa also found that more than eight in ten Democrats (86%) agree that reducing poverty, treating
preventable diseases and improving education in poor countries will help make the world safer and the United States more secure.

*When it comes to addressing these issues, more than eight in ten Democrats (82%) would be more likely to vote for a candidate who supports reducing by half the number of the people who live in extreme global poverty and suffer from hunger.

*The poll found that 30% of Iowa caucus-goers favor John Edwards for president in 2008. Hillary Clinton is favored by 22% of Democrats, Barack Obama by 18% and Bill Richardson by 13%.

We’re currently conducting a poll of Republican Iowa voters and should have the results next week.

A poll out this afternoon from CNN shows that 57 percent of the country think that the Bush presidency has been a failure. Democrats in Congress don’t fare much better, with 55 percent calling their work a failure as well. The CNN Polling Director put it pretty plainly — “The public clearly doesn’t like what it sees coming out of Washington these days.”

What could our elected leaders do to restore our faith in their work?

If you take a look at our ONE Poll from New Hampshire, one answer that cuts across party lines is taking on the fight against extreme global poverty and disease. Ok, now some will say, of course ONE is saying that buying into its mission is a good thing for any president or member of Congress. That’s like someone in Austin saying that he roots for the Longhorns. But take a look at the polling data.

Our ONE Poll in New Hampshire found that 93 percent of Democrats and 84 percent of Republicans agree – yes, agree! — that the United States has a moral obligation to work to fight treatable, preventable disease, particularly those that children predominantly suffer from. Democrats (86%) and Republicans (67%) agree that presidential candidates must incorporate their plans to address global hunger and poverty issues in their foreign policy platforms.

The rest of the ONE Poll shows the same. Let’s have leaders who make a priority of those issues that bring us together as a country. ONE has pointed the way. It’s time for our candidates to jump on board.

-Tom Gavin, ONE Communications Director

“Mitt Romney caught some flak in conservative circles when he was quoted this month telling an Iowa audience that the U.S. should learn from the popular social service functions of groups like Hezbollah and invest more in delivering medical services abroad to build goodwill and weaken the hold of extremists.

But it turns out the former Massachusetts governor may just have been practicing smart politics. A poll of New Hampshire voters released yesterday found that voters in both parties — even the Granite State’s famously penny-pinching conservatives — are open to presidential candidates making a case for a surge in spending on foreign aid.

The poll, of 1000 likely primary voters, was conducted by ONE Vote 08, a $30 million effort that is funded in large part by Bill Gates and linked to the ONE Campaign of U2′s Bono, and intended to make global poverty and global health a major issue in the 2008 presidential race. It found that 70 percent of Republicans believe that the America’s standing has suffered in recent years; that 70 percent of Republicans agree that reducing poverty, treating preventable diseases and improving education in poor countries will make the world safer and the U.S. more secure; and that 67 percent of Republicans believe that it is important for presidential candidates to discuss their plans for addressing global hunger and poverty. (The percentages were not surprisingly even higher among Democratic voters.)

While it might seem as if many voters would find it hard to admit themselves uninterested in fighting global poverty, those advising the ONE Vote 08 campaign said they see real significance in the figures.

“The numbers make a compelling case for a sea change in the way the electorate is thinking about how we address these issues,” said former Clinton spokesman Mike McCurry, in a conference call with reporters. “Instinctively, many Americans see that this would be a smart thing to do.”

And notably, this goes for Republican voters too, said Tucker Eskew, who oversees global communications strategy for the Bush Administration. “It’s in our enlightened self interest, and I believe Republican candidates will enunciate on that and lead on it in the months ahead,” he said.

–Alec MacGillis”

We’ve attached our full memo, with all the results, for our ONE Blog readers here.

The polling demonstrates an inspiring unity among Republican and Democratic voters on some critical issues: they agree, overwhelmingly, that the United States’ next president must address issues such as hunger and global disease and work to expand the availability of clean water and basic education.

A summary of the findings here.

*Nearly all Democrats (97%) and 70% of Republicans agree that America’s standing has suffered in recent years. In addition to a strong military, Democrats (91%) and Republicans (78%) agree that the United States also needs to improve diplomatic relations by doing more to help improve health, education and opportunities in the poorest countries around the world. Both Democrats (81%) and Republicans alike (70%) agree that reducing poverty, treating preventable diseases and improving education in poor countries around the world will help make the world safer and the United States more secure.

*Democrats and Republicans agree that America has a moral obligation as a compassionate nation to help the world’s poorest people through foreign assistance. More than nine in ten Democrats (93%) and 84% of Republicans agree that when millions of children around the world are dying from preventable diseases and hunger, we have a moral obligation to do what we can to help. Similarly, Democrats (90%) and Republicans (85%) agree that it is in keeping with the country’s values and our history of compassion to lead an effort to solve some of the most serious problems facing the world’s poorest people.

*When it comes to addressing these issues, Democrats (86%) and Republicans (67%) agree that it is important for Presidential candidates to discuss their plans for addressing global hunger and poverty issues in this campaign. Additionally, eight in ten Democrats (81%) and Republicans (80%) agree that the next president should keep the commitments made by President Bush to prevent and fight the spread of AIDS in Africa.

Check back a little after 2pm EST when I can post the full survey memo.