Sen. Elizabeth Warren's Speech Wowed the Crowd in Iowa City

Caption: I took some great photos of Elizabeth Warren but my camera disc was overloaded and I didn't realize it. So, no photos. I just ordered a camera disc card with mega storage space. Senator Warren is taller, thinner, and smaller boned than I realized. She has long legs and nice hair.

Senator Warren (D-MA) grew up in Oklahoma. She has three older brothers who all joined the military. The youngest was a combat medic.

"Our dad sold paint, carpet, fencing, a lot of things. He had a heart attack and we lost our car and almost lost our house. I wanted to be a teacher. I lined up my dollies and taught them. I was tough but fair," she reminisced.

"For $50 a semester I could go to commuter college. On a part-time waitressing job I could get a college degree. I went to law school for $450 a semester. I've been a public teacher, a college professor, a U.S. senator, and now I'm a U.S. presidential candidate. My father was a janitor.

"That's not the America of today. That's why I'm running. People have their Social Security garnished to pay student loan debt.

"With high interest rates and fees, there's $1.5 trillion in outstanding college loan debt. That debt is growing by $100 billion a year.

"Our system favors the rich and powerful. Republicans give money to the rich and powerful. [The Trump Tax "Reform" Act conferred 83% of its benefits on the richest one percent of the wealthy permanently.] We're going to take it back!

"Social mobility is lessened. Washington D.C. works great for giant drug companies and oil companies, but not for people worried about climate change. D.C. works great for private prisons and student loan service providers but not for students with student loans."

Since the 1970s, real wages have stayed flat, she continued. Housing is up by two-thirds. The cost of education has tripled.

"Washington has sucked up to the rich and powerful. Take home ownership, for example. The gap between white and black home owners used to be 20% when housing discrimination was legal. The gap began to close. Now the gap is 30%.

"We can't nibble at the edges any more. We have to make big, structural changes. Call corruption for what it is. We need to change the rules:

1. End lobbying as we know it.

2. No more foreign countries lobbying.

3. Close the revolving door between Congress and lobbyists.

4. You don't get to buy stocks if you're legislating.

5. Everyone running for federal office should have to put their taxes online.

"Think big structural changes. Giant corporations have too much power. We need stronger unions in America. Unions built the middle class and can rebuild the middle class.

"We need health care protection for everyone.

"We need a constitutional amendment to protect the right to vote!

"Overturn Citizens United! [At this point there were huge cheers from the crowd.]

Sen. Warren said she's going to walk the walk, speaking of Citizens United, which allows corporations, as though they were people and money is speech, to donate unlimited amounts of money to political action committees (PACs) to support the candidates of their choice, and not take money from any PACs. I've given her money as an individual for years and will continue to.

Sen. Warren said, "No PAC money, no lobbyists' money, no billionaires. [I want to be supported by a] party of the people.

"No one who works full time should live in poverty. We should raise the minimum wage!

"Gun safety: We have a moral obligation to our kids and grandkids to [secure gun safety].

"This next one is controversial. I believe in science. Climate change is real.

"Equal means equal. [That's] true in marriage and true in [other respects?]." I hope she meant equal work should mean equal pay!

"Immigration is not our weakness; it's our strength! Hatred and bigotry have no place in our country.

"The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau [which Sen. Warren created or helped create] is the law of the land. The bureau has forced $12 billion to the returned by corporations to people those corporations have cheated.

"Abolitionists, suffragettes, and the first unions were all hard pressed. They were told it was 'too hard.' And it was hard, but they succeeded.

"This country gave the daughter of a janitor the chance to run for president of the United States." [We need to provide the same opportunities to young people today.]