The Next President of the U.S. Could Be the Leader
in the Fight Against Global Poverty
The next president that gets elected could feasibly be in office in 2015, which coincides with the timeline for meeting the Millennium Development Goals to halve the number of people living in extreme poverty. She or he could be a leader in the global fight against poverty. In order to make this happen, we need to demonstrate that there are a growing and visible number of Americans who care about extreme global poverty and HIV/AIDS.
5 Free Ways to get Presidential Candidates to Listen to You
Ask candidates what kind of leadership they will provide on global poverty when they make public appearances. You could ask questions directly or submit them via a media or organizational host, depending on the format of the forum.
Organize a group of ONE members in ONE T-shirts for a big rally or local forum. Try to stand near the front and in the line of television cameras.
Ask candidates to wear the ONE wrist band. At candidate events, there is almost always a handshake line. The handshake line is a chance to ask a question and to ask the candidate to put on a ONE Campaign wristband. This is very doable. (See the ONE Blog where volunteers have gotten Senators Clinton and Obama, former Mayor Guiliani, and Governor Mitt Romney to put on ONE white bands, to mention just a few success stories.)
Get a photo. Politicians like posed photographs. Getting a photo of you, your group, in ONE T-shirts, with candidates is a good way to ask a question and extend a discussion.
Have your 1-2 talking points for reporters in case you’re asked questions. Let them know that a determining factor in whom your vote goes to depends on a candidate’s proposal to fight extreme global poverty and help make it a better, safer world for all.
Sample Questions for Candidates
"At a time when America needs more friends and fewer enemies in the world, I think we could and should do even more to help save lives in Africa and the world's poorest countries. What would you do as president to help fight AIDS and poverty in Africa and the world's poorest countries?"
"Poverty in the developing world is a serious global security threat, a fact acknowledged when President Bush included development as a priority area of his National Security Strategy. What would you do as president to help fight AIDS and poverty in Africa and the world's poorest countries?"
"After World War II, President Truman and General Marshall took a little of America's money to build a world that had more friends and fewer enemies. That still rings true today and I think that U.S. assistance to the poorest people in the world is vital to our foreign policy. What would you do as president to help fight AIDS and poverty in Africa and the world's poorest countries?"
"Today, 77 million children in the world's poorest countries, many of them girls, don't have the chance to go to school and get even a primary school education. As Americans, we know that education is the key to opportunity and a hopeful future. As president, what would you do to help fight global poverty through education?"
"Over 1 billion people live on less than $1 a day around the world, most of them women and children. What would you do as President to help fight AIDS and poverty in Africa and the world's poorest countries?"
"More than 6 million people, many of them children, die each year of TB, malaria and HIV/AIDS– for lack of drugs any American could get at a local drug store. What would you do as President to help fight AIDS and poverty in Africa and the world's poorest countries?"
"Over one billion of the world's poorest people lack access to a basic supply of clean water today, even though a well provides clean, safe drinking water for 20 years for only $20 a person. What would you do as president to help fight disease and poverty in Africa and the world's poorest countries?"
Remember: ONE is non-partisan and does not endorse any single candidate.
Go to the ONE Blog to find out more about what ONE members are doing to engage 2008 presidential candidates, and make sure to let us know about your meeting with presidential candidates.
