An earlier version of this article did not specify the type of tax returns Senator Warren wants to make public. Senator Warren called for requiring those running for federal office to make their tax returns public.
Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, running for the Democratic nomination in the 2020 election, spoke to an eager crowd in front of the arch at Washington Square Park this Monday, Sept. 16. Waves of “Dream big, fight hard!” “This is what democracy looks like!” and ‘Warren! Warren! Warren!” echoed in what little space was left between street and fountain as the sun set on Greenwich Village.
Warren walked on stage to Dolly Parton’s “9 to 5,” ready to tackle the pressing issues facing the American people today: student debt, climate change, and money controlling politics.
She began her speech by recounting the story of Frances Perkins, a bystander at the Triangle Shirtwaist fire in 1911, who went on to change fire safety rules and become the first woman appointed to the U.S. cabinet, where she served as the Secretary of Labor.
“We’re not here because of famous arches or famous men,” she said. “In fact, we’re not here because of men at all. We’re here because of some hard working women.”
Introductions were given by Maria Martinez, a campaign organizer, detailing her parent’s recent deportation to Mexico, as well as New York state Senator Alessandra Biaggi and Assemblywoman Yuh-Line Niou announcing their endorsement of Warren.
Speaking directly before Warren was Maurice Mitchell of the Working Families Party, who earlier that morning had announced they would also be endorsing her run in the Democratic primary. Though many of the rallying stories told were directly related to causes backed by Warren’s campaign, the theme of the night was corruption.
In her Plan to End Washington Corruption from Sept. 16, Warren states “on issue after issue, widely popular policies are stymied because giant corporations and billionaires who don’t want to pay taxes or follow any rules use their money and influence to stand in the way of big, structural change.”
“We’ve got to call that out for what it is: corruption, plain and simple,” she said in her speech.
Her plans for her potential presidency include: abolishing lobbying for politicians, requiring those running for positions in the federal government to make their tax returns public, stopping politicians from having businesses on the side and taxing the rich two cents for every dollar over $50 million.
Warren’s campaign put attendance at more than 20,000 individuals.
Waiting anxiously for Warren to come on stage was 26-year-old Nathan Erwin. “I wanted someone who was clearly thinking things through,” he said. “I wanted to hear her in person. I think she’s great.”
Across the park was 20-year-old NYU student Oumou Bah with her friend, wading through the crowd to find a spot. Of what she’s expecting for the 2020 election, she said she hopes that “people, despite our differences, can hold a coherent conversation. The only way we outvote [Trump] is to outnumber him. The divide has gotten worse: close the gap. That should be our agenda.”
Behind Warren’s flag backdrop and the arch, Jennifer Petito, a Trump supporter, protested the speech with a Trump 2020 flag.
When asked which of Trump policies she supported, Petito simply said, “Everything.”
Warren is polling at 18.3 percent, according to a recent poll from RealClearPolitics, lagging behind frontrunner former Vice President Joe Biden, at 27 percent, and just above Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, at an average of 16.3 percent.
“There’s a lot at stake in this election, and I know people are scared,” Warren said. “But we can’t choose a candidate we don’t believe in just because we’re too scared to do anything else.”