Sen. John Edwards
Sen. Edwards held a rally Sunday morning at the steps of the Manchester, NH, City Hall. While the rain held off, ONE members came out to show support for the world’s poorest people.
Before the event, I found Deb in a ONE Vote ’08 shirt that she received when she attended the YearlyKos event in Chicago earlier this month. We spoke briefly about ONE Vote ’08 and after the event I talked with her husband Doug about how ONE Vote ’08 is a bi-partisan movement of Americans that want our country to better focus on the global AIDS pandemic and extreme global poverty, even noting Sen. Frist and Sen. Daschle as our co-chairs.
Like so many events, there were many many ONE members in the audience and everywhere you look you could see ONE bands…even on one prominent NH blogger.
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Aug 15th, 2007 10:02 AM UTC
By Field
On Friday August 10th, Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards shared his ideas to relieve extreme poverty around the world at the Laborers Union Hall in Las Vegas.
During a question and answer period I thanked Senator Edwards for making poverty a priority in his campaign and asked him about what he would do to stem the violence and suffering in Africa.
Edwards responded with a firm commitment to help aide the developing world and he went on to expound on his goals for long-term poverty relief throughout Africa.
Senator Edwards said that his top foreign aide priorities would be to eradicate deaths from preventable and curable diseases, ensure education for the world’s children, and initiate trade policies that benefit developing nations.
It is great to be involved with my local ONE Las Vegas chapter and it is such a great opportunity to interact with so many presidential candidates. I’m looking forward to the next opportunity to help raise awareness about ONE Vote 08!
-Renee Meyocks, ONE NV volunteer
On Saturday and Sunday, as Sen. Edwards stumped in New Hampshire and across the state, he ran into ONE Vote ’08.
In Dover, NH, Genna Barrett and her sons attended the Edwards event in their ONE shirts and ONE bands. You can see her son in a ONE shirt with the senator, even though his eyes are closed, his shirt and ONE band made sure that everyone knows saving lives in Africa is a priority. They noted how Senator Edwards spoke about the need to reach out to African countries and end global hunger and disease.
ONE’s Marine, Michael Castaldo was there too with his sons. But instead of “banding” the candidate, he presented Sen. Edwards with a ONE Vote ’08 T-shirt that he held up for the crowd asking “Will your candidate make poverty history?”
In New Hampshire, people of all backgrounds and all political persuasions are finding out just how powerful we are when we come together as ONE to make sure the next president of the United States knows that we can and will beat global AIDS and extreme poverty.
-Matthew Bartlett, ONE
Senator John Edwards headlined the College Democrats of America (CDA) block party on Friday evening. Members of his campaign were sporting the ONE band.
The presidential hopeful spoke to students, many of whom were wearing ONE shirts and bands, about the urgent need to combat AIDS and poverty in Africa. He also discussed the need for clean water and improved sanitation in the continent. The crowd responded enthusiastically to Senator Edwards’ call to action on pressing global issues that are central to the ONE Campaign.
Another man we met at the block party also tackled the issue of world hunger – one oreo cookie at a time.
Aaron Rubin used giant versions of the classic comfort food to demonstrate the size of the U.S. budget and how small the segment actually is that goes to help feed millions of starving people.
Mr. Rubin also came over to the ONE table and added his name to our declaration.
-Mekell Mikell
Since ONE launched ONE Vote ’08 last month I have been keeping an eye out for presidential candidates from both parties to make a campaign stop in Pittsburgh. I wanted to let them know that as an American I want our next president to be a leader in the fight against extreme poverty and global AIDS. I got my first opportunity on Tuesday, July 17, when Senator John Edwards gave a speech at a local non-profit organization, Hill House. So I grabbed my friend Bethany, and we put on our ONE T-shirts and headed out to go use our voices for the world’s poorest people!
I was glad we wore the ONE shirt because when we arrived at the event many people in the crowd came up to tell us that they were members of ONE. Others had never heard of the campaign, so we told them about how they can get involved right here in Pittsburgh in the fight for the billion people around the world who live on less than a dollar a day.
After Senator Edwards spoke he spent time meeting people in the crowd and Bethany and I took our opportunity to speak with him. When it was our turn I said, “Senator! You’re not wearing your ONE band!” As he took the band and put it on he said he had just forgotten his and would take one of mine to wear now. He then mentioned the role the United States must take in fighting global poverty and AIDS and thanked Bethany and I for our volunteer work for ONE.
All in all, it turned out to be an excellent opportunity to support ONE, and I can not wait till the next candidate comes through town! For me, it is not about a candidate or a political party, it is about showing all the candidates, both Republicans and Democrats, that I am just one of millions of Americans who want to make the fight against extreme poverty and the global disease to be a priority in the 2008 presidential election.
Four Iowa ONE Vote organizers tabled at a picnic sponsored by the Linn County Democrats for Senator Edwards this past Saturday. We had a great spot just off the main stage, catching the attention of those who came to see the senator.
During his speech, Edwards talked about many of the issues that are important to the ONE campaign. He talked about the leadership the US needs to provide so that 100 million children will have access to a primary education. He also talked about how much that we take for granted here in America is non-existent in many parts of the world. As an example, he noted that many people still don’t have access to clean drinking water, and by improving access to such a basic necessity, we can prevent the spread of many diseases around the world.
At the conclusion of his remarks, Senator Edwards stopped for a picture with ONE members Michele and Libby. They handed him a ONE band, which he put it on and then thanked the four of us for our work.
Also in attendance at the event was Congressman David Loeabsack, D-IA. Congressman Loebsack is a member of Iowa’s ONE Vote ’08 advisory board and was happy to see that we had made the trip out that afternoon.
On top of enjoying the fresh watermelon, we signed 45 new members up and made sure that ONE’s message was heard. Not a bad way to spend a Saturday.
Senator John Edwards made a visit to Las Vegas yesterday and had nothing but praise for the ONE Campaign. Super-volunteer Amber McIntosh was able to band the senator with a ONE wristband.
When Senator Edwards took questions, he pointed to me and noted to the audience that he called on me because I was wearing a ONE t-shirt. I thanked him for his upcoming poverty tour aimed at raising awareness about poverty in America, and I asked what he would do as president to fight extreme poverty throughout the world.
Senator Edwards proceeded to praise ONE as a “fantastic organization” and commended ONE for our inspiring efforts to eradicate poverty. He also invited everyone in attendance to go learn more about the ONE Campaign.
Edwards said he would focus on three things to fight extreme poverty: 1. Primary education for all children, especially in the nations that do not educate young girls. 2. Provide sanitary, clean water to everyone to fight global disease. 3. Promote economic development in the third world primarily through micro-lending.
He also noted that fighting extreme poverty is the perfect issue for America to take the lead on: “Not only is it the right thing to do, it is also an issue of national security.” Senator Edwards made it very clear that he is committed to fighting poverty both at home and abroad and issued a strong endorsement of ONE to all in attendance.
Senator Edwards closed by saying “I don’t know if you are for me, but I hope you will go to each candidate and ask them the same question about global poverty.” I assured him ONE Vote ’08 will do just that.
Read the June 11 statement from Edwards in support of ONE Vote ’08.
