Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback went on an unpublicized, eight-day trade mission to Israel in late August and early September that included a meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
In this June 7, 2017 photo, Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback speaks during a news conference at the Statehouse in Topeka, Kansas. (AP/John Hanna)
The trip came a month after President Donald Trump nominated Brownback to serve as US ambassador-at-large for international religious freedom. But Brownback administration officials said the trip promoted Kansas businesses and sought to further ties between the state and Israel.
The Hutchinson News reports that the state Department of Commerce said the schedule in Israel from August 26 until September 2 included visits to Israeli businesses and discussions, a stop at a hospital and discussions of irrigation and water treatment. The department estimates the cost of the trip at about $32,000. Brownback’s office issued no news releases before, during or after the trip.
The schedule included a 90-minute meeting with Netanyahu on August 30. While Secretary Nick Jordan and other state Department of Commerce officials accompanied Brownback, they were not present for the meeting with the prime minister, department spokesman Kevin Doel says.
Brownback spokeswoman Rachel Whitten says: “They discussed opportunities for Israeli companies in Kansas, and the growth of entrepreneurialism.”
— AP
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