Newton, Iowa ? At a forum focused on the economy and job creation, five Democrats running for the White House said Saturday they favored tougher trade rules and universal health coverage.

They joined in attacking Bush administration economic policies they said had driven American jobs to low-cost countries and lowered the U.S. standard of living.

“What’s happening is a race to the bottom and it’s hurting families,” Missouri Rep. Dick Gephardt said. “People are giving up because jobs are leaving.”

Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry called for tougher labor and environmental standards in trade agreements, and an economic policy focused on more than simply cutting taxes.

“We need a manufacturing policy that helps our companies compete,” Kerry said.

The forum, organized by state Democrats, drew a crowd of about 350 people to this central Iowa city. Newton is a Democratic stronghold, fertile ground for the candidates in a state where precinct caucuses in January will begin the presidential nominating season.

The city’s biggest employer is the Maytag Corp., where workers are represented by the United Auto Workers union. The company just moved operations from an Illinois factory to Mexico, and there are deep worries that the Newton plant could close too.

“We have to have a plan in place to replace the manufacturing jobs we’ve already lost,” said North Carolina Sen. John Edwards. “We’ve lost 2 million jobs under this administration.”

Al Sharpton drew some of the loudest cheers when he accused President Bush of abandoning ordinary families.

Democratic presidential candidates stand together at the start of a Democratic presidential forum in Newton, Iowa. From left Saturday are Rep. Dick Gephardt from Missouri; Sen. John Kerry from Massachusetts; Sen. John Edwards from North Carolina; the Rev. Al Sharpton; and Rep. Dennis Kucinich from Ohio.

“This government protects the multinational conglomerates rather than protecting the citizens,” Sharpton said. “The president is not elected to be the business agent in Washington for billionaires.”

Ohio Rep. Dennis Kucinich said his first act as president would be to repeal the North American Free Trade Agreement, which is unpopular with labor groups.

Kucinich argued that trade deals have meant “not only a loss of jobs, it’s meant communities breaking up, it’s meant a loss of dreams. It’s caused a transfer of wealth out of this country.”

Edwards said he has tangled with big business as a trial lawyer and cast Bush as an ally of corporate interests.

“This president is not part of the solution because he is part of the problem,” Edwards said. “I have stood up these companies all of my adult life.”

Universal health coverage was endorsed by the five, with Sharpton and Kucinich calling for a single-payer system run by the government.

Gephardt, Kerry and Edwards have made proposals to broaden health coverage.

“This is a moral issue, not just an economic issue,” Gephardt said.

Sharpton said Bush “talks about leaving no child behind, but he really means leave no billionaire behind.”

Later Saturday, Kerry headed to a forum sponsored by Sen. Tom Harkin, who organized an effort to introduce Democratic candidates to party activists and Kerry continued the assault on Bush. He ridiculed Bush for his showy landing on an aircraft carrier returning from combat, pointing to his own service as a decorated veteran of the Vietnam War.