MSNBC "The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell" - Transcript: Interview with Colin Allred

Interview

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And joining us now is Democratic Congressman Colin Allred of Texas. He is a voting rights attorney.

Thank you very much for joining us tonight in your dual capacity as an election law expert and member of Congress. I think we can assume, and unless there is some other stunt that`s possible with the Texas Democrats, that the Republicans are going to pass something. And the question will then become, what can you and Congress do about it?

STATE REP. COLIN ALLRED (D-TX): Well, you`re right, it is likely going to pass. Let me just briefly say, Lawrence, I appreciate your discussion of the attack in Kabul earlier today. And I just want to say that President Biden said it well when he said that those marines died for defending our vision and our values.

And I think that our vision and our values are at risk in what`s happening in Texas right now, because we have an effort, as you know, you covered it well, to try and specifically target types of voting that has allowed minority communities to have easier access to the ballot.

It is not based on trying to vet any kind of fraud. There was no fraud in Texas in the last election. And with 11 million Texans voting, they still won, yet they`re still trying to pursue these divisions. I think it`s un- American and we have to do something in Congress to stop it.

O`DONNELL: Let`s listen to some of the debate in the Texas House where the issue of racism came up and that seemed to bother the Republicans a lot. Let`s listen to this.

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STATE REP. RAPHAEL ANCHIA (D-TX): Courts have pointed out over and over and over again intentional discrimination against African-Americans, intentional discrimination against Latinos, intentional discrimination against people of color.

These are not my words, these are three federal courts across this country making ten findings of that intentional discrimination.

[22:39:48]

STATE REP. GINA HINOJOSA (D-TX): Intentional discrimination against people of a certain race, is that racism?

ANCHIA: That is -- Miss Hinojosa, those words intentional discrimination, I think, can be fairly characterized in that manner.

STATE REP. DADE PHELAN (R-TX): We can talk about racial impacts at this legislation without accusing members of this body of being racist.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

O`DONNELL: Your reaction to that, Congressman.

ALLRED: Well, you know, obviously as a lawyer, I look for what we can prove in a court of law. And we can prove, and we have proven multiple times, that whenever this legislature gets a chance, they try and pass was said there laws that are "intentionally discriminatory" against racial groups in the state of Texas.

And we just had our census data come out showing that we are one of the most diverse states in the country. That we will very soon have Latinos being the largest plurality group in our state, that we are diversifying rapidly, 95 percent of our growth in the last decade with non-white.

So how are we as a (INAUDIBLE) to democracy wanting to work this out where we have a legislature that`s trying to prevent and stand in the middle of kind of a ripper of progress and say stop. Trying to prevent, sort of what we all know is coming in terms of representative government of the state of Texas.

And we have these efforts going on while we are diversifying so rapidly. It`s coming to a head. And we have to understand that as a democracy, for us to continue as a democracy, we have to allow the people to vote and let it come out as it will.

You will win some, you will lose some, you have to change some of your policies, that is how democracy works. And that to me is really what has been so sad for me watching what`s happening in Texas for the last. you know, 10, 15 20 years as we`ve continued to diversify these efforts to try and stop that progress and to try and maintain this old power structure that really isn`t representative of our state anymore.

O`DONNELL: Texas Congressman Colin Allred, thank you very much for joining us again tonight. We always appreciate it.

ALLRED: Thanks, Lawrence.

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