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Today, Congresswoman Veronica Escobar (TX-16) was interviewed by Pablo Manriquez, editor of Migrant Insider, an immigration news outlet in Washington D.C. They spoke about her bipartisan, comprehensive immigration reform bill, the Dignity Act of 2025, that she introduced yesterday. Video of the interview can be found here and a transcript can be found below:

Pablo Manriquez: So Congresswoman, congratulations on reintroducing the Dignity Act. Can you tell us why the Dignity Act is so important? 

Congresswoman Escobar: Yeah. And, you know, just for context, a lot of people think I'm somehow new to presenting immigration reform bills but I've been obviously working on immigration reform since I got to Congress. 

And the very first bill that I actually worked on was during the first presidential election, when Joe Biden was a candidate. I was part of this unity task force and we created the foundation of what became the US Citizenship Act, which was introduced by Linda Sanchez, during President Biden's first term. So, I have worked on very progressive legislation. And then we introduced – Maria [Salazar] and I - introduced last Congress the Dignity Act of 2023. This one this year is different. It is -

PM: Tell us about those differences.

CE: Yeah. You know, the Dignity Act of 2023 actually had a path to citizenship. It was a long path, but it was a path for the more than 12 million undocumented people in the country. This one does not. It has - it still offers legal status for people so that they are free to work, free to travel, not just nationally, but travel internationally.

So, it provides people with the stability and the legal protections to be in the country. I still want a path to citizenship, but I am a member of the minority in a Republican trifecta. In an era of mass deportation, in an era where ICE is picking up people from the street and disappearing them. My view is I want to protect as many people as I possibly can, despite the current political environment and in many ways because of the current political environment, there is an added sense of urgency for me.

The reconciliation bill that was passed two weeks ago supercharges what ICE has been doing, so there has never been a more urgent moment for legal protections for immigrants who are part of our national economy, part of our communities, many of them part of mixed status families with U.S. citizen children. So, while I will continue to pursue ambitious immigration reform, this is practical, immediate reform that on a bipartisan basis could protect and help millions and millions of immigrant residents in our country.

PM: Do you think that sort of backsliding on citizenship, we'll be able to get more from the Republican majority in terms of co-sponsorships? There was a long gap during the Dignity Act of 2023 from about December, when you introduced it to the end of the Congress, when Fitzpatrick was the last Republican co-sponsor. Do you think that you'll be able to get more momentum this term, like what’s –

CE: We should. We should.

PM: Okay, cause that's kind of on Congresswoman Salazar, right? Your partner in this. 

CE: Yeah, but also the bill is structured in a way that still provides people with humanity and dignity, but it addresses the main complaints we heard from Republicans, the “no amnesty” complaint. They see paths to citizenship is amnesty. That's not amnesty, but that's what they call amnesty. 

PM: Right. Well, on that point, though, if, let's say, hypothetically, Congresswoman Salazar is unable to deliver the co-sponsors again, why not go for amnesty in a new term when Democrats actually have power?

CE: Oh, believe me, I mean, if we have another trifecta, it will be on us to get it done just as it was on us before with the US Citizenship Act.

So that failure really was heartbreaking. It truly was heartbreaking. But speaking of this trifecta – 

PM: Right. 

CE: - Republicans have control of every lever of government, and they have gotten, components out of the bill that they said made them uncomfortable. So to your question, there's no reason for them not to support it now. No reason whatsoever. There's no reason for this bill not to pass this Congress in its current form.

PM: And on the notion of an earned pathway to citizenship, sort of the idea that we need to punish migrants for being here illegally, before we can provisionally offer them a pathway to citizenship by the end of this administration will not have been, after all, the suffering that the immigrant community has gone through, have they not earned it now? Like would an amnesty, just straight up a Nixon style amnesty not be in the cards?

CE: You'd have to ask people who oppose that. 

PM: Okay.
CE: I do not oppose that. 

PM: Okay, fair.

CE: And, you know, and I have worked every which way Pablo –

PM: Yeah. 

CE: - to get people protected from a very progressive bill to what is now a profoundly scaled down but still humane and dignified immigration bill that is bipartisan.

We introduced it yesterday with 11 Republicans and 11 Democrats, which really is unheard of on - 

PM: Yeah, that’s powerful.

CE: - this issue of immigration. Yeah, it is powerful and it gives me hope and optimism that we can move this. If we move this, if this becomes law, we can then continue to improve on immigration reform going forward. But then, you know, we have to win elections. We have to be in the majority. We have to be ready and willing to move - to essentially to continue to build on what I consider is a first step, which is the Dignity Act.

PM: And last question, I've been asking everybody this question. What are you hearing from your constituents about ICE activity in your district? 

CE: Incredible concern, fear, anger. I've even heard that actually from folks who voted for Trump in my district who almost –

PM: What are they saying? 

CE: Basically, “I thought he was going to pursue criminals.” And, you know, there's still a lot of Trump supporters who are saying, “This is what I voted for. This is exactly what I want.” You know, and that may be the case for a lot of people, but when you look at the national polling, his support for - especially because of his tactics, because of what he's doing, because of the way he is doing this, because he lied to the American people and claimed he was only going over or going to focus on the worst of the worst people - you're seeing his numbers on this caving and imploding. And so my view is this is the best possible moment to protect as many people as we possibly can. 

PM: Sorry, last one, one more follow-up question if you don't mind. 78% of Americans were just found in the latest Gallup poll -

CE: Yup.

PM: - to support a pathway to citizenship. So by removing the citizenship from the Dignity Act, are you concerned that maybe, you know, it's not jiving with exactly what the times are?

CE: Yeah. Believe me, I am delighted that Americans are finding their way back. 

PM: Good.

CE: And this is who we are as Americans. And I will say what I have said many times. 

We have an aging population. We have a population that's not having families as large as they used to. We need the workforce that hard working immigrants bring - people who want to be new Americans - bring to the table. It's advantageous to us. So even for those who don't believe in the moral imperative behind reform, maybe they'll believe in the self-interest that comes with immigration. 

But what is popular American opinion is not always translated into what's doable on Capitol Hill. Capitol Hill is different from US opinion. We saw that with the Big Ugly Bill. 

You know, the vast majority of Americans did not want health care cuts, but Republicans barreled through. The vast majority of Americans are profoundly concerned with the way Trump is engaging on mass deportation. Republicans, to a large extent, have not repudiated that. 

So, this is what is possible on Capitol Hill in this moment. I am - I believe me, I pushed the citizenship issue as far as I could. We would not have had a bipartisan product as large as we have had it remained the Dignity Act of 2023.

PM: Got it, thank you so much Congresswoman.

CE: Thanks, Pablo.

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