Luke Ramseth | Mississippi Clarion Ledger

Barbara Gauntt, Clarion-Ledger

GREENVILLE — The 2020 presidential race came to Mississippi on Monday as U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren pushed an ambitious affordable housing plan in two Delta campaign stops.

“In a democracy, we need a government that doesn’t just work for those who are already rich," the Massachusetts Democrat said in Greenville, ahead of a Jackson town hall Monday evening. "We need a government that says, ‘You’re rich? Good for you, but pitch just a little bit back in the kitty, so everybody else gets a chance.'"

Warren began a three-state Southern tour with a town hall in Memphis on Sunday night, speaking to about 500 people. The Mississippi leg of the trip started Monday morning in Cleveland, where she met with state Sen. Willie Simmons at the home of civil rights leader Amzie Moore, before discussing poverty and housing issues on a walk to Simmons' restaurant, "The Senator's Place."

{{props.notification}} {{props.tag}} {{props.expression}} {{props.linkSubscribe.text}} {{#modules.acquisition.inline}}{{/modules.acquisition.inline}} ... Our reporting. Your stories. Get unlimited digital access to exclusive content. Subscribe Now

Hours later in Greenville, she learned about that city's affordable housing shortage during a walking tour with Mayor Errick Simmons and a roundtable with several local housing experts. She was trailed by a number of cameras and reporters at both stops, though neither included an organized public gathering.

Warren recently rolled out a housing plan based on legislation she introduced in the Senate last year, the American Housing and Economic Mobility Act. It's the latest of several in-depth policy proposals she's authored, including a universal child care and early education plan she discussed in Memphis.

Story continues below gallery.

View | 10 Photos

Progress makes Greenville a stop on Sen. Warren's campaign trail.

The housing plan's goal is driving down rents, building and remodeling homes with a massive federal government investment and closing a racial gap related to home ownership.

Its $500 billion price tag for 3 million new housing units constructed over the next decade would be paid for with a "progressive estate tax" on the rich, she said. "That's what this housing bill is about — just a little fairness for the rest of the folks."

“I want to get out and talk to people across this country about who our government works for," Warren said of why she chose to come to the Delta. "Right now, it’s working for the rich and powerful.”

Greenville was an apt place to discuss housing challenges in rural America.

Daniel Boggs, CEO of the Greater Greenville Housing & Revitalization Association, told Warren a central issue the city faces is substandard housing. Indeed, during the walking tour, Warren walked past several crumbling and vacant homes.

About 700 residents are on a waiting list to receive affordable units offered by his organization, Boggs said, and he estimates there may be as many as 2,000 people in the city of 30,000 that need it.

"Everything's kind of falling (apart)," said Boggs, who said the Delta's shifting soils and older housing stock contributes to the problem. "Building new housing in our community is a big priority for us, just because of the lack of affordable, quality housing."

New jobs and projects have come to Greenville in recent years, Simmons added, but the affordable housing supply can't keep up.

"When people come into your community, they look for housing first. And once they find housing, then they look for jobs, then they look for places for their kids to go to school. Housing is a critical piece of that quality of life puzzle,” he said.

Warren said she was impressed by steps the city has taken to address the shortage.

Now, she said, it needs the federal government to provide an influx of resources.

"It’s not for the federal government to come here to Greenville and say, 'Build this, or build that.' It’s for the federal government to say, ‘What’s your plan to provide for your people, and how can we be a good partner in that?'" Warren said. "Being a good partner, in this case, means money. And we need to put the money on the ground in places like Greenville.”

After her Delta stops, Warren headed to Jackson State for a CNN town hall. On Tuesday she is scheduled to be in Selma and Birmingham, Alabama.

Simmons said he was pleased a presidential contender had come “to put the spotlight on Greenville — but more importantly put the spotlight on rural America, to show that housing is critical.”