x
Breaking News
More () »

Sen. Elizabeth Warren visits Norfolk, vows to get 'big money' out of politics

The Massachusetts senator, who is vying for the 2020 democratic nomination, pitched her plans to Virginians.

NORFOLK, Va. — Elizabeth Warren, the Democratic presidential candidate, held a townhall in Norfolk Friday at the Chartway Arena on ODU's campus.

The Massachusetts senator, who is vying for the 2020 democratic nomination, pitched her plans to Virginians.

The event started with a retired Navy Rear Admiral addressing the crowd, saying, "Veterans can be Democrats!" The arena went wild.

Once on stage, Warren focused heavily on money, and after a brief backstory on her, she went right into her idea to tax the wealthy.

"When you make it big, I mean really big, I mean top one-tenth of one percent big, pitch in two cents so everybody else in this country has a chance to make it," she said.

Warren said a structural overhaul of the economy is part of her three-part plan.

The second part, she said, is getting big money out of Washington. 

"I don't want a government that works for giant multi-national corporations. I want one that works for our families," she said.

The final part of the plan is what the senator called 'protecting democracy,' which includes getting rid of gerrymandering.

Warren did not say President Donald Trump's name once, until the tail end of the night. Three people from the crowd got to ask her questions, and the second man said he is in immigrant from Bolivia.

He asked Warren how she will help restore the Hispanic community's trust in government.

"We need to stop this trump-made crisis at our southern border," Warren said, garnering cheers.

Her campaign staff claims more than 4,000 people attended Friday's townhall. A massive crowd stayed after the rally to get a 'selfie' with the presidential hopeful.

Warren never mentioned her Medicare for All plan during the event. When asked why not afterward by 13News Now reporter Madeline Schmitt, Warren responded, "We didn't get a question about it."

It's important to remember she was heavily criticized by fellow candidates during Tuesday's debate about how she would fund universal healthcare. Warren would not directly answer that, leaving some worried it means a heavy tax on middle-class families. 

Warren now heads to another swing state, Iowa, for back-to-back townhalls on Sunday.

RELATED: Who is running for president in 2020?

Recently, Warren has overtaken former Vice President Joe Biden by a slim margin as the new Democratic presidential nomination frontrunner, according to a Real Clear Politics (RCP) national polling average. Warren has 26.6% average support compared to 26.4% for Biden. 

More Elizabeth Warren News:

Follow 13News Now on and Twitter
► Make it easy to keep up to date with more stories like this. 
Download the 13News Now App.

Before You Leave, Check This Out