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Poverty Focus May Not Pay Off Politically

U.S. News and World Report, July 19, 2007

And while candidates grapple with how to frame domestic poverty issues, a well-financed organization calling itself ONE Vote '08 has launched a $30 million campaign to bring attention to global poverty. That group, which has received about $22 million from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and support from U2's Bono, has targeted four early-primary states and is promoting the message that helping people in the poorest and most desperate places on Earth will ultimately enhance national security.

ONE Vote, which plans a $6 million targeted advertising campaign as part of its effort, will be asking candidates to sign a pledge endorsing the mission of promoting global health and reducing poverty. It's hard to imagine anyone opposing a reduction in poverty. But it's also hard to imagine politicians or voters turning their attention away from the carnage in Iraq.

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