Trump's Austin rally is closest-to-election Texas foray by a presidential contender in two decades

Donald Trump is staging two public campaign events in Austin on Tuesday, making his foray into Texas the closest to the general election by any major-party presidential nominee in two decades.

Except to serve as an ATM for candidates briefly stopping over to raise money, Texas is generally inert during general-election contests for the White House.

It hasn't voted for a Democrat for president since Jimmy Carter carried the state in 1976 against President Gerald Ford.

Nothing much happens here after the primaries — and in some cycles, during the primaries as well as the general election.
How do you explain Trump's investment of most of a day in public events in Austin on Tuesday?