Obama proposes to spend $50 billion to reduce global poverty by 2012

[Dems Will Win]

$5 billion to fight terror. 10 to 1.

Plus $2 billion for a global education initiative to counter radical madrasses.

This is very smart stuff and is one of the 5 points of his speech today. This is the important part of his speech -- not about raids into Pakistan on actionable intelligence:

As President, I will make it a focus of my foreign policy to roll back the tide of hopelessness that gives rise to hate. Freedom must mean freedom from fear, not the freedom of anarchy. I will never shrug my shoulders and say -- as Secretary Rumsfeld did -- "Freedom is untidy." I will focus our support on helping nations build independent judicial systems, honest police forces, and financial systems that are transparent and accountable. Freedom must also mean freedom from want, not freedom lost to an empty stomach. So I will make poverty reduction a key part of helping other nations reduce anarchy.

I will double our annual investments to meet these challenges to $50 billion by 2012. And I will support a $2 billion Global Education Fund to counter the radical madrasas -- often funded by money from within Saudi Arabia -- that have filled young minds with messages of hate. We must work for a world where every child, everywhere, is taught to build and not to destroy. And as we lead we will ask for more from our friends in Europe and Asia as well -- more support for our diplomacy, more support for multilateral peacekeeping, and more support to rebuild societies ravaged by conflict.

I will also launch a program of public diplomacy that is a coordinated effort across my Administration, not a small group of political officials at the State Department explaining a misguided war. We will open "America Houses" in cities across the Islamic world, with Internet, libraries, English lessons, stories of America's Muslims and the strength they add to our country, and vocational programs. Through a new " America's Voice Corps" we will recruit, train, and send out into the field talented young Americans who can speak with -- and listen to -- the people who today hear about us only from our enemies.

As President, I will lead this effort. In the first 100 days of my Administration, I will travel to a major Islamic forum and deliver an address to redefine our struggle. I will make clear that we are not at war with Islam, that we will stand with those who are willing to stand up for their future, and that we need their effort to defeat the prophets of hate and violence. I will speak directly to that child who looks up at that helicopter, and my message will be clear: "You matter to us. Your future is our future. And our moment is now."

http://www.barackobama.com/2007/08/01/the_war_we_need_to_win.php

By the way, in Pakistan if Mushareff fell and there were free elections, Mrs. Bhutto would almost certainly win. Then you would have a liberal woman in charge of all those nukes.

THe America's Houses concept sounds like a new idea. What do you think?

And the new ARG poll shows Obama tied for first in NH and in first in SC. Is the race moving due to the debate after-debate?

[OmmmSweetOmmm]

1. How about 50 billion to do away with US poverty? How about 50 billion

for Universal health care? How about 50 billion to repair our infrastructures, schools etc....

[durrrty libby]

2. Damn right. These delusions of grandeur for the world are

beyond stupid, when there is so much need at home

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

4. I really don't think it's an either or here.

[baldguy]

3. Want to reduce illegal immigration? Want to reduce terrorism?

Want to reduce America's trade deficit with the world?

Reduce global poverty.

[Dems Will Win]

5. Exactly! We have to choose ALL OF THE ABOVE

I would rather have Obama endorse single-payer. I hope this will come once he is President.

He does repeal the Bush tax cut and put it in health care and education as well.

[madrchsod]

6. throwing money at the problem is not the solution

jesus h christ it`s the same old wine in the same old bottle.....is there anyone running that understands how to go about this problem other than spending billions we do not have?

[Dems Will Win]

9. He's not just throwing money at it -- he's following the recommendations

of the Millennium Project, which has studied this and come up with a practical plan that focuses on sustainable agriculture and renewable energy at the grassroots.

[ecstatic]

7. I don't know if that specific plan will go over well UNLESS

other nations promise to do the same.

[RestoreGore]

8. Cut the defense budget in half

Then perhaps we would be able to take care of OUR OWN people as well as help those in the world who truly need it.

[BlooInBloo]

10. I like the spirit, but it'll get nowhere until the America First! wolfpack is appeased.

[Sapphire Blue]

11. From March 15, 2007...

Transformational Change For America And The World
JOHN EDWARDS 08
Mar 15, 2007

Remarks as prepared for delivery
Manchester, New Hampshire


~ excerpt ~

When we're serious about moral leadership at home, we have the standing to assert moral leadership in the world.

And I believe we can begin by leading in areas that – at first glance – might not seem directly related to our self-interest. I'm talking about global poverty, primary education. But I believe if you look closely, it's clear that these areas are in fact directly related to our present and future national security.

We know that terrorists thrive in failed states, and in states torn apart by internal conflict and poverty.

And we know that in many African and Muslim countries today, extreme poverty and civil wars have gutted government educational systems.

So what's taking their place? The answer is troubling – but filled with opportunity if we have the courage to seize it.

A great portion of a generation is being educated in madrassas run by militant extremists rather than in public schools. And as a result, thousands and thousands of young people who might once have aspired to be educated in America are being taught to hate America.

When you understand that, it suddenly becomes clear: global poverty is not just a moral issue for the United States – it is a national security issue for the United States. If we tackle it, we will be doing a good and moral thing by helping to improve the lives of billions of people around the world who live on less than $2 per day – but we will also begin to create a world in which the ideologies of radical terrorism are overwhelmed by the ideologies of education, democracy, and opportunity. If we tackle it, we have the chance to change a generation of potential enemies into a generation of friends. Now that would be transformational.

But the challenge is great – generational struggles require generational solutions – so we must meet the challenge with an audacious plan.

As President I would implement a four-point plan to tackle global poverty – and improve the national security of the United States:

First, we would launch a sweeping effort to support primary education in the developing world.

More than 100 million young children have no school at all, denied even a primary education to learn how to read and write. Education is particularly important for young girls; as just one example of the ripple effects, educated mothers have lower rates of infant mortality and are 50 percent more likely to have their children immunized.

As president, I will lead a worldwide effort to extend primary education to millions of children in the developing world by fully funding the Millennium Development Goal of universal primary education by 2015. The U.S. will do its part by bringing education to 23 million children in poor countries, and we will ask our allies to step up and do the rest. It's not just good for our security; it's good for theirs.

Second, we will support preventive health care in the developing world.

Women and children bear the burden of poverty and disease in the developing world. Women in our poorest countries have a 10% chance of dying during childbirth. More than 10 million children die each year from preventable diseases. Many of these diseases are preventable with clean water and basic sanitation or affordable immunizations.

As president, I will convene a worldwide summit on low-cost investments in clean drinking water and sanitation. Under my plan, the U.S. will increase its investment in clean water six-fold.

Third, we can get to the root of global poverty by increasing opportunity, political opportunity and economic opportunity. Democratic rights allow poor citizens to force their countries to create more progressive laws, fight oppression and demand economic stability. Economic initiatives like microfinance and micro-insurance can spark entrepreneurship, allowing people to transform their own lives.

And fourth, I would appoint an individual in the White House, reporting directly to me, with the rank of a Cabinet member, to oversee all of our efforts to fight global poverty. Despite its importance to our national security, the United States still lacks a comprehensive strategy to fight global poverty. We need to embrace the vision of John F. Kennedy, who recognized that "the Nation's interest and the cause of political freedom require" American efforts to lift up the world's poor.

Continued @ http://johnedwards.com/news/speeches/nhip20070315/

[Sapphire Blue]

12. oops - self-delete (my cat posted this duplicate reply - stepped on the 'enter' key)