“Governor Greg Abbott this morning arrived in Israel to reaffirm Texas’ enduring and unwavering support of the State of Israel, the Israeli people, and Israel’s right to self-defense amid acts of war by the brutal terrorist organization Hamas. This is Governor Abbott’s third trip to Israel since elected Governor in 2015… During the trip, Governor Abbott will meet with Israeli officials and visit with victims and impacted families to gain first-hand knowledge about the impacts of the Israel-Hamas war and ways Texas can continue to support Israel – America’s strongest ally in the Middle East. The Governor is joined on the trip by Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt,” says Abbott’s office in a statement.

Interesting how the Republican governors of Texas and Oklahoma, states with Jewish populations totaling 0.6 and 0.1 percent, respectively, feel it necessary to take a trip to a potentially dangerous war zone. Contrast it New York Governor Kathy Hochul, who visited last month: The Jewish population of her state, 8.8 percent, is actually larger than her margin of victory last year over Tribesman Republican former Congressman Lee Zeldin. Even with Ron DeSantis supposedly sending weapons to Israel makes sense given that Florida’s Jewish population at 3.3 percent is greater than his initial margin of victory in 2018 over former Dem Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum.

Abbott and Stitt on the other hand are pretty obviously not trying to show solidarity with their near non-existent Jewish electorates so much as pissing away taxpayer money to pander to the bizarre Evangelical obsession with Israel and the Islamophobic racists in the MAGA base.