CNN "CNN Newsroom" - Transcript: Rep. Vicente Gonzalez (D-TX) Is Interviewed On Texas Governor's Decision To Take No More Refugees Into Texas

Interview

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WHITFIELD: Paula Newton, thank you so much.

Let's talk further in all of this. I want to bring in now Texas Congressman Vicente Gonzalez. He is a Democratic member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. Good to see you, congressman. So Iran's military first denied that it was a missile that brought down that plane. Now, an admission that that's indeed how it all happened. Do you have any concerns about ever really getting the full picture even following an admission?

REP. VINCENTE GONZALEZ (D-TX): We certainly need to get to the bottom of it. It's tragic. It's appalling. It's horrific. My heart and prayers go out to the family of the loved one who have been lost in this very negligent military act on behalf of Iran. And I think they need to comply with international investigators and allow us in to investigate, and see exactly what happened, and assure that Iran takes full responsibility to all the family members and people who tragically lost their lives in this accident.

WHITFIELD: And do you find yourself kind of split on how to deal with Iran? Because I know initially you did express some concern about the strike, the drone strike, the U.S. drone strike against Soleimani. And you were worried about the intelligence that supported this imminent threat. And then of course now, just days after that strike, Iran takes down a commercial jet. What does this do? What does this mean? How does it lay the ground work for the U.S., any leverage the U.S. may have had with dealing with Iran moving forward, whether it's about threats, or whether it's culpability?

[14:10:04]

GONZALEZ: Well, clearly we can begin with the premise that General Soleimani was no angel, right? And maybe he did need to be taken out. But we needed to have a clear strategy, we still need to have a clear strategy on how we're going to continue to deal with that conflict that is still ongoing, in my opinion, with Iran, and assure that a situation like what just happened with this Ukrainian airliner never happens again and get to the bottom of it to assure that whether it was intentional or really just a military accident of Iran. That's something that many Americans and people around the world have some serious reservations with. And I think --

WHITFIELD: What happened with that commercial jet, and Iran's admission in any way, change your view about how the U.S. approached the killing of the Iranian general? They're very different circumstances, but it does involve the same country.

GONZALEZ: There are. Right. There are. I don't know if they thought maybe that was a military jet, and they mistakened it for an attack and took preemptive action, or if it was just an intentional shot they took at an a passenger jet. We should get to the bottom of that and find out, and I think the international community deserves to know, and certainly, the people who lost their lives, the Canadians and other countries around the world, want to know what actually happened. And I think the Iranians are responsible to give us a clear answer.

WHITFIELD: OK, Congressman, I want to ask you now about impeachment proceeding, Senate trial, possibly as early as next week. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi says she'll send over the articles of impeachment, the two articles of impeachment to the Senate next week, and now a small group of Republican senators, Senator Collins among them, is saying that they want to talk about, strike a deal perhaps, to have witnesses called during the trial. What does this say to you about, or does it say anything in relation to what Speaker Pelosi's strategy was?

GONZALEZ: I believe the American people want to hear testimony from other witnesses, such as Ambassador Bolton, who wants to come and talk to the Senate. I think they should allow him and others, and get to the bottom of it before they take it to a vote.

WHITFIELD: What will it mean if you don't hear from John Bolton after John Bolton has said he will willingly come if subpoenaed?

GONZALEZ: I certainly hope that he would come, and that he is subpoenaed.

WHITFIELD: But if the president exerts his executive privilege, I mean do you see that John Bolton potentially could not testify at all or just be selective about testimony if called?

GONZALEZ: Well, we're going to have to see what the president does about that. But that's also something that the American people will get to see as well. And if Bolton wants to write letters to the Senate giving information, I think he still can do that. But we certainly need to hear what he has to say. I think the American people deserve that, and I think Senate members that are up for re-election this coming November, will be held responsible in their respective states to assure that all of the testimony comes out and the American people have a clear-eyed view of what happened.

WHITFIELD: And now on another matter, because, boy, there are a lot, and we should talk to you about in Texas, your state, announcing this week that it is opting out of accepting refugees for resettlement under President Trump's executive order, allowing states to do that. So Texas Governor Abbott citing the surge of migrants crossing the border last year. Do you support that decision?

GONZALEZ: I don't think it is the governor's business to try to take up federal regulation, things that are the federal government's job, and how we deal with asylum seekers coming into this entire country. It is an issue. I'm a border member of Congress, so I dealt with that. I had 68,000 refugees show up in one month. It was very chaotic and very complex and very difficult.

And I've been advocating for years now that we're going to continue to have this problem on our southern border until we go to the three Central American states, which is Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras, and invest on security on the ground, and bring in economic prosperity to incentivize people from those countries to want to stay home. Until we do that, we're going to keep dealing with this on our southern border. We are just putting a band-aid on it. What we're dealing with on our southern border is a result of failed American policy.

Mexican nationals are no longer coming to my border. Even with the insecurity that is happening in Mexico, because now, their economy is robust, people can find jobs, make livings, take care of their family. They don't migrate because it's a vacation. They come here out of despair. And I think we need to address the issues in those three countries where 75 percent of migration is coming from, and a wall will not stop them. And you got to --

WHITFIELD: Yes, and among those families are children, and there are still a lot of children being held in the detention facilities --

GONZALEZ: That's right. Very sad.

WHITFIELD: -- in your state. What do you know about how they are doing, what's the status? Have you or anyone had a chance to do any kind of wellness checks? Nobody has really talked very much about these children for a very long time.

[14:15:05]

GONZALEZ: Well, I've visited the detention centers, several times, and my last visit was an improvement from the one before that. Now some of the pressure has been alleviated only because we are sending asylum seekers back across the border from Brownsville, Texas, to Matamoros, and so that is an issue I think has taken some of the pressure off these processing center.

But we need to reunify families. I was in Guatemala, not long ago, and I met with an indigenous woman who had been deported back to Guatemala, and her toddler, two-year-old toddler, was still detained in Buffalo, New York. I find that outrageous. And we need to do something about it. And we can. And we should be better than that.

WHITFIELD: Congressman Vicente Gonzalez, thank you so much for your time.

GONZALEZ: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: Meantime, we're also following this breaking news. The death toll now rising from severe storms in the United States, ripping through the south right now. We'll tell you who is in the path of this dangerous storm system that includes heavy rain, tornadoes, and snow in some parts.

Plus, a new chapter in the impeachment battle, Democrats maybe one step closer to getting their wish for witnesses.

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