August 25th, 2008 at 4:19 pm | posted by Chris.Scott
Last week the Ohio ONE Vote ’08 staff and interns attended an Obama Register for Change event at Columbus State Community College in Columbus, OH. DNC Chairman Howard Dean was there along with Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, and actor Kal Penn who plays Kumar in movies such as Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle.
The trio are touring the country on their way to Denver and encouraging people who are not registered to vote to do so. After the event we had an opportunity to speak with Dean, Klobuchar, and Penn. Dean had very kind words for us and accepted a ONE Vote ’08 t-shirt.
Senator Klobuchar, who recently became a ONE Vote ’08 Co-Chair for Minnesota, proudly told us of her involvement with the ONE Campaign. She was especially excited for this week’s state ONE Vote ‘08 kickoff. Penn, who spoke at length about the great things that young people can accomplish was happy to see us out there talking about how we can make poverty history.
August 25th, 2008 at 10:14 am | posted by Chris.Scott
I just wanted to drop a quick update about USAID’s efforts to provide immediate relief to the ongoing food crisis in Ethiopia. As you may know, Ethiopia and other countries in the Horn of Africa have been hit especially hard by the rise in food and fuel prices and drought. In July, the UN warned that more than 14 million people in the region are in need of emergency food aid, with 10.3 million in Ethiopia alone. This new U.S. shipment is an important step in meeting Ethiopia’s urgent food needs and should be accompanied by new investments in agricultural productivity to target long-term food security and help Ethiopia become self-sufficient.
The shipment includes 9,390 MT of split yellow peas, 6,150 MT of vegetable oil, 6,320 MT of corn soy blend, and 1,400 MT of wheat flour, the agency said in a statement.
“This is only one of multiple strategies USAID is implementing to alleviate impacts of the world food crisis in that region and elsewhere around the world”, it said.
Accordingly, USAID’s Office of Food for Peace plans to provide over 1 million MT of food, valued at more than $857 million, to Ethiopia, Somalia, Kenya and Djibouti in fiscal year 2008 in response to the drought emergency affecting the Horn of Africa.
August 24th, 2008 at 10:52 am | posted by Virginia Simmons
Back in December, ONE members got all the presidential candidates to go on the record with their plans to fight global poverty. You can watch short video clips of Senator Biden discussing his plans on ONE’s “On The Record” microsite.
This was his response to the question: “If elected president, what would you want your legacy to be to Africa and the world’s poor?”
Below are his written replies to 5 questions from ONE:
On reversing the spread of HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis:
“As President, I have pledged that I will provide at least $50 billion by 2013 to combat HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria. Millions of lives are at stake. We must make an investment that matches the scale of the epidemics.”
On eradicating malaria:
“Over one million people die yearly from malaria, a preventable disease. I have long supported efforts to develop a vaccine for malaria, and as President, I would expand these efforts. And I would make it a priority to increase access to prevention tools — we know they work. In the 21st century, no one should be dying from mosquito bites.”
On improving child and maternal health:
“The health and welfare of women and children are the foundation of every family, community, and nation. As a senator, I have introduced legislation to safeguard women and children in refugee and IDP camps and I am the author of the International Violence Against Women Act. As president, I would build on these efforts to address the interlinked health needs and human rights of women and children.”
On achieving universal primary education:
“I co-sponsored the Education for All Act and I have long supported universal primary education. Its the foundation of democracy, an investment in the future and the most powerful tool we have to empower women. Universal primary education is, simply put, a fundamental need.”
On cutting in half the number of people without clean water or enough food:
“Water born diseases are one of the leading killers of children under five. Hunger and malnutrition threaten the health and well being of millions more. Global warming will just make these problems worse. As Chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, I have seen the consequences of unsafe water and inadequate food around the world. As President, I would invest in helping countries tackle these challenges as part of a comprehensive health and development strategy.”
On additional commitments to the world’s poor:
I am proud to have partnered with Bono on Jubilee 2000 debt relief. We kept at it and the result was the G-8 debt relief actions at Glen Eagles in 2006. I see it as a moral and economic obligation to keep money in countries that have such great need instead of paying off what are often the long ago acquired debts of dictators. As the world’s richest country, we have a moral obligation to increase our share of the effort to eliminate poverty. It’s also strategically smart because it’s in our national security interest to help prevent states from failing. The countries that we help have an equal responsibility to invest these funds in their own people.”
August 23rd, 2008 at 8:37 am | posted by Virginia Simmons
The news is finally out!
Barack Obama has chosen Senator Joe Biden as his running mate. For more than a year, ONE members have been advocating our issues to the presidential candidates, our next job is to deliver that same message to the VP-picks.
Let’s turn this political moment into a poverty-fighting moment by talking to Senator Joe Biden right now, before he gets swept-up in coast-to-coast campaign and the crush of 24-hour national media attention.
August 22nd, 2008 at 7:09 pm | posted by Chris.Scott
Days before our brand new Voices ad even hits the airwaves for the first time, we’re already overwhelmed by the amount of attention—and press—it’s getting! 85,000+ views on Youtube, shout-outs in dozens of most well-read blogs, numerous mentions in the national press - and thanks to YOU the buzz continues to build.
The Chicago Tribune’s blog Swamp describes the ad as “a remarkable show of Matt Damon channeling the words of the wives of the presidential candidates and New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg - with the actor’s image playing a ventriloquist’s role for a bipartisan and independent team of voices appealing for help for the world’s poorest.” The Defamer says Matt Damon “makes a convincing first lady.” Democratic Blogging Staple DailyKos describes the ad as “non-partisan tackling of global poverty, hunger and HIV/AIDS”, and Republican powerhouse blog Townhall breaks the news that the ad “will debut on Meet the Press on Sunday.”
To see what all the fuss is about visit www.one.org/voices and be sure to pass along to your friends to help spread our message of ending global poverty.
Below, a small sampling of the ad’s blog coverage so far:
August 22nd, 2008 at 12:48 pm | posted by Chris.Scott
News of a great development in Kenya ran on the BBC.com and in other media outlets earlier this week. On Wednesday, anti-corruption czar John Githongo returned to Kenya after four years of self-exile. During his tenure as Kenya’s secretary for ethics and governance, Githongo earned the reputation for being tough on corruption— in 2005, one of his investigations forced the resignation of several ministers over a scandal that involved state contracts worth more than $1 billion being secretly awarded to non-existent firms. After exposing the scam, Githongo fled to the UK because of threats to his life.
Githongo’s return is an important step forward for Kenya’s new coalition government, which was put in place after controversial elections set off two months of violence earlier this year. He is back for only two weeks, but his return (at the invitation of the new government) is hopefully a sign that Kenya’s new government is serious about tackling corruption and addressing some of the underlying issues that caused the election crisis. Speaking to the Kenya Human Rights Commission on Wednesday, Githongo submitted the controversial proposal of offering amnesty as a means of closing old corruption cases and moving Kenya forward.
Whistle-blowers like Githongo are vital to beating poverty in Africa and across the world. The fight against corruption and efforts to promote transparency and good governance help ensure that aid is spent well and channeled to the people who need it most. ONE is also proud to note that John Githongo currently sits on our Policy Advisory Board and serves as an important advisor on issues of accountability and governance.
Addressing a public forum on fighting graft in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, Mr Githongo said economic crimes must be resolved quickly and transparently. “The temptation to subject economic crimes to prolonged processes and the deliberation of committees not only delays justice but makes ultimate accountability less likely,” he said. Mr Githongo noted that there was a myth that corruption does not really matter as long as the economy is growing. “If you have high economic growth [and] a high level of corruption… then corruption causes political contradictions that leads to the kind of difficulties we had in Kenya at the end of last year,” he said.
August 21st, 2008 at 10:59 am | posted by Chris.Scott
This article from yesterday’s International Herald Tribune offers an excellent rundown of where the U.S.’s support currently stands for global trade talks. People like U.S. Trade Representative Susan Schwab are diligently working behind the scenes to ensure that trade talks continue throughout the remainder of President Bush’s presidency and onto the next administration. Schwab makes the excellent point that whoever the next U.S. President may be, it is up to all of us to build the political will necessary to continue these vital WTO trade talks.
The most significant WTO meeting in three years aimed to pull off a broad compromise that, in short, would have let poor countries sell more produce to rich countries while giving the U.S., 27-nation EU and Japan new chances for their manufacturers and service providers in the emerging markets of Brazil, China and India.
“There are always going to be elections. There are always going to be politics intervening,” [Schwab] said, adding that the U.S. would continue to look for a trade package that generates global growth, alleviates poverty, creates new opportunities for American exporters and combats protectionism at home and abroad. “If there is a deal out there that meets those criteria, I don’t care when it shows up,” Schwab said. “We have to go for it. It can’t be dictated by our electoral cycle or anyone else’s.”
For more than a year, ONE members have been trailing the presidential
candidates asking them to go on the record with their plans to combat global poverty. Now we’re taking our message to the airwaves with this major new TV ad. The spot spot features Matt Damon with different Americans’ voices - among them Michelle Obama, Cindy McCain and Mayor Bloomberg.
Share this online sneak preview with your friends now, and then watch for it on TV nationally starting Sunday, August 24th.
August 20th, 2008 at 4:52 pm | posted by Chris.Scott
Fighting poverty can be hard work and ONE members haven’t let up all year, winning big victories and keeping the pressure on both presidential candidates to make ending global poverty a top priority.
To say thank you for everything you’ve done, our brand new ONE Bus Tour is making a special stop in Omaha on its way from the Democratic National Convention in Denver to the Republican National Convention in Minneapolis and they’re bringing a special guest, legendary musician Wyclef Jean.
If you plan on being in the Omaha area on Saturday, August 30th be sure to join us! The event is free and open to all ONE members. However, you must RSVP to attend. To RSVP for your two free tickets, click here! You must be 21 years of age or older to attend and tickets can be picked up at the will-call window on the day of the show. Space is limited and tickets are available on a first come, first served basis.
When: Saturday, August 30th, 12:00pm - 2:00pm
Where: The Slowdown, 729 North 14th Street, Omaha, Nebraska 68102
Also be sure to take a moment to check out Wyclef’s great organization Yéle Haiti committed to creating small-scale, manageable and replicable projects to contribute to Haiti’s long-term progress.
August 20th, 2008 at 3:32 pm | posted by Chris.Scott
Minnesota ONE members gathered in their State Capitol today to celebrate Minnesota officially becoming a “ONE State” united against global poverty and preventable disease.
Governor Tim Pawlenty signed the ONE State proclamation at an event held in the Governor’s Reception Room at the Capitol, which was also attended by Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), local faith leaders and other officials from both political parties. Gov. Pawlenty and Sen. Klobuchar showcased the ways Minnesotans can get involved in efforts to save lives from extreme poverty and preventable disease in Africa and poor regions around the world. Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak (D-MN) and St. Paul Mayor Chris Coleman (D-MN) also signed declarations earlier in the week making their respective cities official “ONE Cities.”
The ONE Blog is a daily log of the anti-poverty movement. The site is operated by ONE staff, volunteers, members and coalition partners.
The content of each post and each comment represent the views of that author and does not necessarily reflect the views of the ONE Campaign or ONE Action. ONE does not support or oppose any candidate for elected office, and any posts expressing support or opposition for a candidate is not endorsed by ONE.
