Bernie Sanders returns to Iowa, where it's never too early to think about the next election

Iowa progressives thirsting for another Bernie Sanders presidential run got a campaign-style speech in Des Moines on Saturday, but few clues about the Vermont senator's future political ambitions.

Speaking to a crowd of about 1,100 at the Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement's annual convention, Sanders ignored the possibility of a run in 2020 and instead focused on issues like a looming Senate vote on a controversial health care bill that would repeal parts of the Affordable Care Act.

He criticized Republican President Donald Trump for supporting the legislation, calling it "the most anti-working-class legislation ever presented in the modern history of this country."

"President Trump, don’t tell the people of this country that you support the working class when you are defending legislation which will throw 22 million Americans off of the health care they currently have," the former Democratic presidential candidate said. "That is not defending the working class. That is a major attack on middle class and working-class families all across this country."

The bill is set to come before the Senate for a vote as early as next week. Its success hinges on a razor-thin margin of support; one more Republican "no" vote would derail its current chances.

"Right now we need one more Republican vote," Sanders said. "I say to Sen. Grassley and Sen. Ernst: Please, please, take a hard look at what this disastrous legislation will do to the people of Iowa and the people of America. I beg of them, please vote 'no' on this legislation."

The event took place at the same time and in the same building as the Family Leadership Summit, an event focused on promoting Christian conservative values in politics and featuring Trump's senior counselor, Kellyanne Conway, as its headliner.

The Iowa CCI event featured speakers and workshops representing the other end of the political spectrum, with breakout groups such as "Undocumented and Unafraid" and "The Fight for our Lives: Medicare for all."

Attendees expressed hope that Sanders would again seek the presidency.

“I’d love for him to run again," said Rick Thomas, a counselor from Des Moines who volunteered during Sanders' caucus run. "I just saw a lady here with a t-shirt that said 'hindsight is 2020.'"

Thomas said he listened to Sanders with a certain sense of sadness, thinking about what might have been.

"The thing that I love about him so much is he’s changed the conversation that has been going on in our culture for 20 or 30 years," Thomas said. "Our culture’s political conversation has been dragged to the right. Ideas that used to be considered mainstream are now attacked as leftist, socialist."

Sanders campaigned heavily in Iowa ahead of the February 2015 caucuses as he sought the Democratic presidential nomination, though he fell just short of victory here to rival Hilary Clinton.

Clinton, who went on to be the nominee, eked out the narrowest of caucus-night victories, claiming 49.8 percent of Iowa's delegate equivalents over Sanders' 49.6 percent.

Sanders began his speech by thanking those Iowans who supported him during that run .

"For over a year I spent a lot of time in this beautiful state," he said. "I did the kind of politics that I love to do. We did well over 100 town meetings and we met with tens of thousands of Iowans in the largest cities and the smallest towns. And I just want to thank all of you for your hospitality and your kindness and many of you for the support that you gave me."

Since the November election, Sanders has continued making appearances across the country, helping to fuel speculation of a possible second presidential run.

Sanders last week refused to rule out that possibility, telling Sirius XM's Mark Thompson that, "I am not taking it off the table. I just have not made any decisions, and I think it's much too early."

At the event Saturday, he touched on many of the same themes that were staples of his 2016 campaign, including tuition-free colleges, income inequality, an expansion of the social safety net and scaling back the influence of big corporations, super PACs and billionaires.

Alicia Garza, an activist who co-founded the Black Lives Matter movement, also spoke to the crowd earlier in the day.

She said Saturday was the four-year anniversary of the birth of the Black Lives Matter movement. George Zimmerman was acquitted of murdering Trayvon Martin on July 14, 2013, which prompted her to write a Facebook post and coin the phrase "Black Lives Matter."

"There are so many more organizations and groups of people who have emerged from that moment of tragedy to say, 'We’ve had enough and we’re going to build the world we deserve and nobody’s going to get in our way,'" she said.

Both Sanders and Garza encouraged the roomful of progressive activists to find political power through organizing and pushing for social change.

“Their power comes from organized money," Garza said. "Our power comes from organized people."