Billionaire liberal activist and potential 2020 candidate Tom Steyer held a town hall on Tuesday where he compared voter turnout in the 2018 midterm elections to firefighters responding to the 9/11 terror attacks.

Steyer, after discussing the actions of first responders on Sept. 11, 2001, said turnout in 2018 was like "tens of millions of Americans running to put out the fire."

"I think what we should be confident in and hopeful about is Americans. Look, this society has a history of running towards the fire," Steyer said to the Charleston, South Carolina crowd. "If you think about 9/11, there were people running to the fire. And was that a smart thing to do? No. But was that the American thing to do? Very much."

Steyer, a frequent critic of President Donald Trump who has led a campaign to impeach the 45th president, said people are running to the polls to combat "stuff that has gone on … that is just like 9/11."

"We're in Charleston, South Carolina … I went over to Mother Emmanuel Church, and look, there has been some stuff that has gone on in the United States that is just like 9/11. It's a conflict," He said. "And there's people running to put out the fire. That's a very American thing. When we talk about turnout in 2018, that is tens of millions of Americans running to put out the fire."

"So what I expect Americans to do is exactly what you guys are doing, what people are doing across the United States, standing up in crisis and doing the right thing," Steyer continued. "That's what we can all be hopeful about–each other. We will do this, I promise. We will win this."

The town hall event in Charleston is another signal Steyer may throw his hat into the ring for 2020. While few Democrats have officially announced their candidacy, many are expected to do so in the coming months. Democrats considering a run include Sens. Kamala Harris (D., Calif.), Cory Booker (D., N.J.), Elizabeth Warren (D., Mass.), and Sherrod Brown (D., Ohio) along with Reps. Beto O'Rourke (D., Texas) and Eric Swalwell (D., Calif.).