Only days before Iowa caucuses, Clinton appeals for support

MARION — With a week left until Iowa's first-in-the-nation caucuses, Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton on Sunday implored a packed middle school cafeteria to support her, criticizing presidential contenders on both sides of the aisle.

U.S. Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey appeared with Clinton to fire up the crowd before her speech, calling the former U.S. secretary of state the most qualified person to hold the presidency since George Washington.

'She knows that we've got to do a better job in this country to make sure everyone in this country gets a fair shot, and when they're there, to make sure they get equal pay for equal work,' Booker said to applause.

Speaking to a crowd of hundreds at Vernon Middle School, Clinton slammed Republican opponents and chastised rivals for the Democratic nomination, urging voters to caucus for her.

'You are the first people in America who get to send a message to the world about what you're looking for in the next president and commander in chief,' Clinton said. 'I really need your help. I need you to go out and help us: volunteer, phone bank and canvass in the next week, and I need you to come to the caucus and bring people with you to stand up for me.'

While Clinton has been softer on her main opponent, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, in recent days, she still took shots at his plans to combat 'big banks' and his proposals for free college and a new health care system.

Clinton has 49 percent support among likely Iowa caucusgoers, compared with Sanders' 41.8 percent, according to a Real Clear Politics average of polls.

'The Republicans want to repeal the Affordable Care Act …. We can't let them go back to the way it used to be,' Clinton said. 'On the other side, Sanders wants to start all over. He has his plan, which I respect, but I don't want us to throw our country back into a contentious debate about health care.'

She called Sanders' plan for free tuition a 'big burden that wouldn't help everyone,' saying those who can afford college should pay for it and the focus should instead be on driving down education costs.

While Clinton has faced criticism for her connections to powerful Wall Street interests, she said she has confronted them in the past and isn't afraid to do so again.

'No bank is too big to fail, and no executive is too powerful to jail,' she said.

Also Sunday, she and Booker made a stop at Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church in Cedar Rapids.

According to remarks released by her campaign, she told the congregation President Barack Obama insisted she become his secretary of state, although she preferred to remain a U.S. senator. She said she prayed before making 'one of the best decisions I've ever made.'

She also invoked the name of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and described the water crises in Flint, Mich., as a civil rights issue.

Clinton also stopped at Riley's Cafe in Cedar Rapids, signing the wall as Obama did while campaigning in Iowa four years ago.

Following her Marion visit, she spoke at a North Liberty elementary school, accompanied by Planned Parenthood President Cecile Richards.