About Spotlight

The Initiative

Foundations created this project to build momentum for national action addressing poverty in 2009.

Spotlight has invited the presidential candidates to answer five questions concerning poverty and economic opportunity. Spotlight will also seek to provide other opportunities for the candidates to set forth their views on these important issues, including a Forum in Washington DC in May 2008.

In order to stimulate a national dialogue on poverty and opportunity, the Spotlight website offers current press coverage, commentary and debate, and the policy options. Recent reports, analyses, and data on poverty and opportunity will be profiled on the site and readily available to policy makers and thought leaders.

Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity: Foundations Ask the Presidential Candidates What They’ll Do for America is interested in promoting a national dialogue on these important issues. Spotlight does not support or oppose any candidate for public office and does not take positions on legislation.

Candidate Selection

Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity invited Presidential candidates to submit videotaped or written responses to a set of five questions. The invitation was made to all candidates who had officially declared their candidacy and had been selected by at least 1 percent of respondents in  a recent set of polls.  

Spotlight will post all candidate responses that we received by a deadline. Spotlight will also post late responses on a  later timetable. Candidates were offered the choice of free videotaping  services, or a set of specifications to follow if doing the taping themselves. Where their schedules did not accommodate taping, we accepted written  responses.

Spotlight posts all candidate responses. Candidates were invited to submit additional video and written materials in addition to their responses to the five Spotlight questions. To see the responses to the five questions, and other materials about poverty and opportunity for each candidate, click on a candidate’s  photo. In addition to candidate submissions, we have also included publicly available statements and positions by the candidates and their surrogates on poverty and opportunity.