MSNBC "The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell" - Transcript: "New Trump administration ICE raid."

Interview

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O`DONNELL: Joining us now is freshman Minnesota Congresswoman Angie Craig. She is a proud Member of the House Agriculture Committee. Congresswoman Craig, thank you very much for joining us tonight, really appreciate it.

CRAIG: No, it`s an honor, Lawrence. Thank you.

O`DONNELL: And you were at that meeting yesterday with Agriculture Secretary Perdue. What have you seen change in - in your voters, in your districts, in their attitude toward the Trump tariffs, because the Trump tariffs were in place when you were running for Office, and they`ve taken a bigger bite out of the agricultural economy, basically every week of those tariffs?

CRAIG: Well Minnesota farmers want what American farmers want. They don`t want a handout. They want a fair price. And they want the opportunity to have open markets. And so, as I approach my job in Congress, you know, I talk to farmers every single day, and I listen to them, based on the policy. And if it`s a policy that the administration has put forward that I can support, I support it. And if it`s something that I need to fight the administration on because it`s going to be bad for Minnesota`s farmers, then I stand up and fight the administration on it.

O`DONNELL: What is that - what was in your case, in your district the number one issue when you were running last year?

CRAIG: The number one issue was healthcare, and that`s still after open markets. The number two issue that farmers talk to me about every single day, it`s the price of healthcare in the individual marketplace because most of them have to get their healthcare in the individual market or a spouse works off farm, and it`s the high price, the prescription drugs in this country. And so, as I fight for family farmers, you know, my background of working for 25 years in healthcare comes in handy, I promise.

O`DONNELL: Well it may be that Senator Lindsey Graham did everything he could today to help your re-election campaign. Let`s listen to what he said actually on Tuesday about healthcare.

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SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R-SC): If we can get the House back and keep our majority in the Senate, and President Trump wins re-election, I can promise you not only are we going to repeal Obamacare, we`re going to do it in a smart way where South Carolina will be the biggest winner.

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O`DONNELL: How would that play with your voters--

CRAIG: Wow!

O`DONNELL: --in Minnesota?

CRAIG: Lawrence, I have one of the highest Congressional districts in the country of non-elderly folks who have a pre-existing condition at 51 percent. And that was one of the things I said is I will fight the administration tooth and nail to make sure that pre-existing conditions continue to be covered. Look, the first priority, I believe, is to make sure we protect the things that we got out of the ACA, which is, by the way, now a decades-old law. That`s been one of the most frustrating things to me about being a Member of Congress is Republicans won`t help us stabilize American healthcare because if they do it, they feel like somehow they`re supporting the Affordable Care Act. And, you know, this is beyond that. The people of my district can`t wait for us to step up. Farmers in my district can`t wait for us to step up, and stabilize healthcare, or for the next big idea on how we reform healthcare. We`ve got to, as a first step protect the advances that we`ve achieved over the last decade.

O`DONNELL: Congresswoman Angie Craig gets tonight`s LAST WORD. Thank you very much for joining us tonight, Congresswoman.

CRAIG: Thank you. It`s an honor.

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