“I’m more Jewish than you think I am,” Perry told a New York Times Magazine reporter while eatinng a corned-beef Reuben at a Jewish deli in Beverley Hills, California. “I read the part of the Bible that said the Jews are God’s chosen people.”

Perry, who is in California to help give a boost to Jewish Republicans, is a likely 2016 Republican presidential candidate.

Despite any political misgivings you might have about Perry, there is no reason to doubt his strong support for Israel and the Jewish people.

Perry, who is an Evangelical Christian, has visited Israel several times, including his most recent visit last October to promote Israeli-Texas joint economic programs. He also inaugurated Texas A&M University’s “Peace Campus” campus in Nazareth, which will serve the Israeli city’s Muslim, Christian, and Jewish populations.

Of course, who could also forget Perry singing and dancing with some Jews at the Texas state capitol for Hanukkah a few years back.

Maybe we should welcome Perry as an honorary Jew?

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