But What Can You Do? tracks where 2026 candidates stand on U.S. weapons and funding for the government of Israel. How we check
Ken Paxton
Asked in 2026 about hostility toward Israel on the right, Paxton said of funding the government of Israel: "Now does that mean that we fund everything they want to fund?" In 2024 he said Sen. John Cornyn's vote for aid including Israel defended other countries' borders "but not America."
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You asked Ken Paxton where they stand.
Deep Dive
Paxton, Texas's attorney general, beat Sen. John Cornyn by 28 points in the May 2026 Republican Senate runoff. He has no federal votes, and his record runs in two registers that do not resolve into one aid position.
On the packages, he is a border-first critic: in February 2024 he attacked Cornyn's vote for the $95 billion foreign aid package that included military assistance for Israel, writing: "Unbelievable that @JohnCornyn would stay up all night to defend other countries borders, but not America." His campaign's issues page criticizes politicians concerned with "sending billions to foreign countries and protecting the borders of other nations"; it does not name Israel. Asked by the Washington Examiner what he would say to people on the right who feel hostility toward Israel, he called Israel a democracy and an ally, the San Antonio Express-News reported, and went on: "Now does that mean that we fund everything they want to fund?" He added: "It means that we should consider our view — the America First agenda first." He has not said he would cut aid to the government of Israel; he has said the packages carrying it have the wrong priorities.
As attorney general his pro-Israel enforcement record is long: he defended Texas's law barring state contracts with companies that boycott Israel through years of litigation (in 2023 he called the law "both constitutional and, unfortunately, increasingly necessary"), investigated Ben & Jerry's parent Unilever, and in August 2025 opened an investigation of a school district over antisemitism claims. In January 2026 he filed a multistate brief supporting October 7 victims suing American Muslims for Palestine and National Students for Justice in Palestine under the Anti-Terrorism Act, saying "Radical Islamic terrorist groups like Hamas must be decimated and dismantled, and that includes their domestic supporting branches".
The record
• February 2018: Filed a friend-of-the-court brief (joined by Nevada's attorney general) in U.S. District Court supporting Arizona's law barring state contractors from boycotting Israel.
• January 15, 2019: Asked a U.S. District Court to deny preliminary injunctions against Texas H.B. 89 in lawsuits by Bahia Amawi, who had contracted with the Pflugerville Independent School District, and four ACLU-represented plaintiffs, arguing the law applies to 'companies,' not individuals' personal boycott decisions.
• November 22, 2021: Joined 12 other state attorneys general in a letter to Unilever PLC objecting to Ben & Jerry's boycott of Israel and calling on Unilever to reconsider, citing 33 states' anti-boycott divestment/contract-cancellation laws.
• November 2021-July 2023: Defended Texas's anti-boycott-of-Israel contracting law (Tex. Gov't Code ch. 2271, successor provision to H.B. 89's ch. 2270) in the A&R Engineering litigation. Houston contractor Rasmy Hassouna's firm sued the City of Houston and the Texas attorney general on November 1, 2021 after refusing a city contract clause certifying it would not boycott Israel; the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas preliminarily enjoined the city and the attorney general; the attorney general's office appealed, and on July 10, 2023 the Fifth Circuit (A & R Engineering v. Scott, No. 22-20047) reversed and ordered the suit against the attorney general dismissed for lack of standing.
• April 2023: Announced a Fifth Circuit victory (Abdullah v. Paxton, No. 22-50315, decided April 11, 2023) affirming dismissal, for lack of standing, of a public-pension beneficiary's constitutional challenge (First Amendment, Establishment Clause, and due process) to Texas's anti-boycott public-pension divestment statute (Tex. Gov't Code § 808) brought against the attorney general and comptroller.
• October 17, 2023: Issued an advisory letter providing enforcement guidance on Texas laws restricting government contracts with companies that boycott energy companies, discriminate against firearm entities, or boycott Israel.
How this mark works
We track key votes on sending U.S. weapons and money to the government of Israel. A check means every tracked vote they cast came down against sending more, on the side of peace and de-escalation. A question mark means a mixed record: they sided with sending up to half of the time. An X means they voted to send more weapons and money in over half of their tracked votes, even as the way those weapons and dollars were being used became more and more obvious. At exactly half, money this election cycle from a lobbying group we track, or an endorsement from a group that backs sending weapons, makes it an X. Only votes actually cast are counted. Where a candidate has no recorded votes on these bills, the mark comes instead from a reviewed reading of their public record (money from the lobbying groups we track, endorsements, and their own words since January 26, 2024). There an X also covers fully backing the conduct of the war by the government of Israel without significant reservations, and a question mark also covers speaking about Israel without saying clearly where they stand on U.S. weapons and funding. A dash means No Position Found: we found nothing in their own words about Israel, Gaza or the war.
See a dash? Ask the candidate where they stand, then send us their answer and we'll review it and update the mark. Or volunteer to help review candidates.
No recorded votes on the bills we track. Backed with $5K by Republican Jewish Coalition (FEC filings).
The money
$5K in lifetime support from the five lobbying groups we track
In their words
Research log
The notes behind this card: what we looked at, what we found, and where each item came from.
U.S. military aid and weapons to Israel
- [Position, 2024-02-13] Attack on Cornyn's vote for the $95B package including Israel military assistance (his X post, read 2026-09-24 through X's embed service; also the Houston Chronicle): "Unbelievable that @JohnCornyn would stay up all night to defend other countries borders, but not America." The post has no apostrophes, and the card quotes it as written. The Chronicle reports a second post calling Cornyn an "America Last RINO".
- [Position, 2026-07-22, reported] Asked by the Washington Examiner what he would say to the growing segment on the right feeling "hostility" towards Israel, he said the nation is a democracy and an ally and that the U.S. should work with all countries willing to be an ally, as reported by the San Antonio Express-News. His words, as the paper quotes them: "Now does that mean that we fund everything they want to fund?" and "It means that we should consider our view — the America First agenda first." The Washington Examiner original has not been located. The same article reports that AIPAC has not backed a candidate in this race since Cornyn lost the primary.
- [Position, read 2026-09-25] His campaign issues page: "While many Washington career politicians are concerned with sending billions to foreign countries and protecting the borders of other nations, Ken Paxton’s top priority will always be the American people." The page does not name Israel; the Express-News reads the line as including Israel.
U.S. aid to Palestinians
- Nothing located as a funding position.
Characterization of the conflict
- [Reaction window, 2023-10-13] Joined 27 attorneys general: Hamas a "genocidal terrorist organization"; Israel's right to defend against "inexplicable and obscene violence"; responsibility for lives lost lies with Hamas (his release). Not on the card summary; signed jointly with others.
- [Position, 2026-01-06] Multistate amicus brief supporting October 7 victims' Anti-Terrorism Act claims against AMP and NSJP (his release, read and verified verbatim): the groups declared themselves part of a "Unity Intifada" under Hamas's "unified command" per the release; his words: "Radical Islamic terrorist groups like Hamas must be decimated and dismantled, and that includes their domestic supporting branches" and "Terrorism relies on complex networks and intermediaries, and the law must be enforced against those who knowingly provide material support." The release prints the two sentences with "said Attorney General Paxton" between them.
Related rhetoric and lobbying
- [Prior, 2019-01-15] Defended HB 89 in federal court (release): "Texas law simply provides that if you choose to engage in nationality-based discrimination, then you may be choosing to forgo the privilege of receiving taxpayer money". A description of the boycott movement as an attempt to cause economic isolation and injury to a key ally and trading partner of Texas, earlier quoted here, is not on this release or on the 2020 release below, so it is not quoted.
- [Prior, 2020-04-28] Applauded the Fifth Circuit vacating the injunction against the anti-boycott law (release).
- [Prior, 2023-04-18] Won the appellate ruling defending the statute; he called the law "both constitutional and, unfortunately, increasingly necessary as the radical left becomes increasingly hostile and antagonistic toward Israel" (release).
- [Prior, 2021-11-22] Joined the 12-state letter to Unilever over Ben & Jerry's (enforcement, investigation releases). His office maintains an Israel news category.
Safety and antisemitism (context)
- [Position, 2025-08-28] Investigation of Plano ISD over antisemitism claims (FOX 4).
Also in this race
- ✓Opposes James Talarico (Democrat)
- –No Position Found Jade Simmons (write-in) (Independent)
- ✓Opposes Ted Brown (Libertarian)
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