Sanders: I'm best to beat Republicans in November

Sen. Bernie Sanders says he boasts the best chances of beating the Republican presidential nominee in the November 2016 general election.

Speaking to The Des Moines Register's editorial board, the Vermont senator addressed a wide range of domestic and foreign policy issues on Thursday. His pitch, kicking off a three-day Iowa swing, came less than a week after a Des Moines Register/Bloomberg Politics Iowa Poll found Sanders closing in to within 7 points of frontrunner Hillary Clinton, who has lost a third of her Iowa support since May.

In order to maintain control of the White House, Sanders said Democrats need to find a way to improve "disgracefully low" voter turnout rates.

"If the Democrats wan to win an election, they're going to have to create and see some enthusiasm on the ground. They're going to have to see some young people getting involved in the political process, working people getting involved in the political process," he said. "And they're going to have to see a very different type of campaign in terms of the issues and in terms of the process than we have seen in the past."

And Sanders thinks he can wage that kind of campaign.

"The only way that happens is when millions of people get involved and excited about the political process. The only way that happens is when you have a candidate talking about the real issues impacting working families and the middle class," he said. "I believe, honestly, I am that candidate. I believe, honestly, for those reasons that I have a better chance to defeat a Republican in 2016 than any other Democratic candidate."

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Sanders, who describes himself as a democratic socialist, is proposing a massive federal jobs program to rebuild crumbling infrastructure, doubling the minimum wage, breaking up the big banks, tuition-free college and universal healthcare through a single payer system. Sanders said he knew his populist message would resonate with voters.

"What I have been really stunned by is the speed at which that message is resonating in Iowa and all across America," he said. "We have had some of the largest turnouts of any candidate in this campaign."

He's drawing big crowds both in Iowa and across the country. His quick speech at The Des Moines Register Political Soapbox was attended by thousands of people who stood under the scorching sun at the Iowa State Fair.

"Thousands of people were there. It blew me away," Sanders said.

But support is superseding the campaign's political organization, Sanders said. So the campaign is rapidly hiring staffers in order to make sure that enthusiasm and large crowds actually translate into votes.

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"We have to convert that support into making sure people come out to the caucus," he said. "You can have all the support in the world and not necessarily see that converted into votes."

Even with his surprisingly fast surge, Sanders said there's plenty of room to grow. Several polls show that Sanders is still unknown to about one-fifth of the population.

"There are still many people who don't even know who Bernie Sanders is," he said. "We have a lot of work in front of us."

Here's how Sanders' weighed in on various other issues:

On mass shootings: "I believe very, very strongly that if you look at some of these horrific situations, which we seem to be seeing every other week, we need to be do a lot more in terms of making mental health counseling available to people in need...You have a time bomb ticking. There are thousands of people in this country, sad to say but true, who are suicidal, who are homicidal. And those people need to get help immediately. And i think mental health counseling and expanding our capabilities is a very important part of this solution."

On gun control: "It is fine for some people to stand up and say I want to ban every gun in America and other people to say no, I don't believe in any gun control at all. But at the end of the day I think I can play a role, a very positive role, coming from a rural state which has virtually no gun control and say look, both sides are going to have to make some compromises here and work toward sensible gun control.I think most Americans believe we've got to do everything we can to make sure that guns do not fall into the hands of people who should not have them."

On Iran: Sanders says he supports President Barack Obama's nuclear deal with Iran, though he doesn't necessarily trust Iran. He said criticized Republicans who callously talk about other ways to stop Iran for acquiring a nuclear weapon. "Yeah there are, I guess maybe," he said. "That's going to war." Sanders said the agreement has enough mechanisms to punish Iran if it reneges.

On the Department of Defense: Sanders said he would push for more transparency at the DOD, whose finances he said has been difficult to study as a senator. "Instead of just throwing money at the Department of Defense, we need to run a much more efficient operation and by the way we need to be focusing on terrorism, not continuing the war on the Soviet Union, which is not terribly relevant."

On childhood poverty: Sanders said the United States has an appalling number of children living in poverty. "We are the wealthiest country in the history and yet we treat our children abysmally," he said. Sanders is pushing for a "revolution in childcare," in which people are just as excited about teaching the youngest students as they are about becoming college professors, because both are equally important. He said an investment in free or affordable childcare will pay off later in later.

On tuition-free college: Many young, poor students know they'll never get to college, Sanders said. Their parents didn't go to college and they don't know anyone who did. He said his free tuition plan will provide hope, not just savings for students. "That concept is as important to kids in the fifth grade as it is for high school kids. It's not just saving money. it is giving hope and opportunity, if you like, to kids in many cases that don't have that belief that they can succeed."