MSNBC "The Rachel Maddow Show" - Transcript: Interview with Veronica Escobar

Interview

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Congresswoman Veronica Escobar, Democrat of Texas -- Congresswoman Escobar, it`s nice of you to make time. I know it`s been a long and tense day already. Thanks very much for being here.

REP. VERONICA ESCOBAR (D-TX): Rachel, thanks so much for having me.

There`s such an incredible, positive, hopeful story to tell, and I`m so happy to be on your show to tell it.

MADDOW: Well, tell me about what the American people should know about what`s happening at Fort Bliss, what you saw and sort of the scale of the operations there.

ESCOBAR: I literally just got home about an hour ago. And what I saw filled my heart with tremendous hope and pride. I had the opportunity to thank a number of soldiers, troops whose mission it is to clear land, to do everything within their power to provide humanitarian support for who they are calling their guests, the refugees who were allies to us and partners to us in Afghanistan. They have built makeshift soccer goals so that the kids can play, and every single soldier that I spoke to today who I expressed my gratitude to told me that they were grateful, that they felt honor and pride to be able to participate in this mission.

I also had the opportunity to speak to Afghan families. And that was incredible. In reflecting on it once I got home, I will tell you I was overwhelmed by emotion. Those families thanked me. They thanked our military leadership. I spoke to an interpreter who fled with his wife who is a journalist.

These are people who are filled with gratitude and who are finally safe and sound. It is now our turn as Americans to ensure that we do everything that we can to help support them.

MADDOW: Obviously, the journey that a lot of these folks have been through in the immediate sense has been harrowing, not just in the big picture in terms of the decades of war in Afghanistan and difficult circumstances at home, but just the immediate journey. I mean, the incredible security challenges now increasing the sort of desperate security challenges at the Afghan -- at the Kabul airport in Afghanistan. We`ve also heard very difficult reports about bad conditions on the ground in Qatar, which was the first U.S. military base that was used as the first weigh station before it was essentially overfilled with evacuees from Kabul and they started spreading them around to other weigh stations and other first stops.

We know that people have had to deal with a lot on the way here. But it sounds like from what you`re saying as least when they get as far as a place like Fort Bliss, conditions are good and people are being held in circumstances that are not only sanitary and safe, but positive.

ESCOBAR: That`s absolutely right, Rachel. And, you know, the mission, of course, has evolved. What is happening in Afghanistan is the administration is doing everything possible to save lives essentially, to get as many people out. What they have done in terms of the number of flights and the number of people has been nothing short of impressive.

And then the next part of their journey once their lives have been saved is to make sure that upon their arrival, they`re provided with the health care and the safe sanitary security of a place to stay. And so they`re all getting COVID tested along the way. In fact here at Fort Bliss, of the 1,200 guests that have arrived at Fort Bliss, only one has tested positive for COVID. They`re getting vaccinated for COVID.

A baby was born just last night at our local hospital, university medical center. There are a range of guests from infants all the way to elderly Afghans. And they are finally safe and sound and grateful.

You know, it is -- it is -- there was a moment there as I was -- right after I spoke to a family and the military leadership was walking me through the base and showing me the various tents and facilities where the NGOs are housed and all of those spots along the way. I saw a group of kids playing.

And, Rachel, there is nothing more hopeful than the resiliency of those kids and seeing them playing under the southwest sun.

MADDOW: Texas Democratic Congresswoman Veronica Escobar, whose district includes Fort Bliss -- thank you for telling us about what`s happening at Fort Bliss.

Again, the Pentagon press secretary went out of his way to talk about the community interest in your district and being helpful to those folks at the base right now. So it`s good to get your firsthand report, Congresswoman Escobar. Thank you so much.

ESCOBAR: Thank you, Rachel. Appreciate it.

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