Democrat presidential candidate Tom Steyer, from California, stopped in Council Bluffs and Atlantic, Tuesday. In Atlantic, Steyer spoke to about 20-people about his upbringing, education, and how be became a self-made billionaire. He also spoke about term limits, education assistance and what it will take to challenge and defeat Republican President Donald Trump in November, 2020.

Dem. Tom Steyer speaks to a small crowd in Atlantic (1/21/20) – Ric Hanson/photo

Steyer, in talking about his roots, made a veiled reference to Americans who support Trump as being akin to Germans in World War 2, who were blinded by the fiery rhetoric and power of Adolph Hitler. He said his father, who as an attorney, prosecuted the Nazis, said “The Germans had something wrong at the heart of their society, and they did nothing about it. They thought it would go away, they thought they could control it, they thought it would be okay, and it just went to a place that no one ever intended or could have imagined.”

That’s why he says he said started the “Need to Impeach” movement. “Eight and a half million people signed the petition,” he said. “They called their [representatives]…saying ‘do the right thing. Stand up for the country. I think those 8.5 million people dragged Washington, D.C into impeaching this President.”

Steyer said his simple thesis with regard to why he’s running for President is: “The government is broken.” He said “I think it’s been bought by corporations. I don’t think it’s trying to serve the people [In the audience], and I don’t think it’s gonna try to serve [those in the audience] until we take it back.” Steyer called for 12-year term limits for Congress people and Senators, as part of a Washington “restructuring,”  saying “If you want real change, we’re gonna have to put different new and different people in charge.”

When asked about the “Perceived benefits of the new tax law,” Steyer said he considers it “The worst piece of economic legislation in American history. They gave the biggest tax break in history to rich people and corporations…and blew up the budget (instead of reducing the budget).” Steyer said there has been 40-years of “Trickle down” economics (where the assumption is tax breaks for the rich will flow down and benefit others in society) which he says “Has never worked, not one time.” He says the current “regressive tax rate…where working people pay higher rates of taxes than really rich people..and where the top 400 corporations pay an average tax rate of 11-percent. That is outrageous and wrong,” according to Steyer.

Steyer said with regard to continuing education, he proposes a plan to make college affordable that includes two years of free community college. Loans would have an interest rate of one percent, so you pay back the money you owe. If you go into some type of profession that is a community service or country service (such as a doctor, or military), teaching social work, nursing (etc.), at the end of 10-years, you get what everyone in the military receives: Your loan is forgiven.

Steyer also touched on his recurrent theme of green energy and the importance of climate change.