Attorney General Ken Paxton today commended President Trump for issuing a White House proclamation declaring this National Sanctity of Human Life Day, and for initiating two major actions to protect life and the conscience rights of Americans.
"Nearing a year in office, President Trump has already taken significant steps to roll back the radical abortion polices of the Obama-era, protect the innocent lives of the unborn, and preserve religious liberties,” Attorney General Paxton said. “The president’s pro-life accomplishments embolden all of us in Texas who believe that every human life, including every baby waiting to be born, is sacred, unique and worthy of protection.”
Acting on direction from the Trump administration, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued a letter that rescinds a 2016 Obama-era policy that restricted the ability of Texas and other states to take certain actions against family-planning providers that offer abortion services. HHS also announced a new proposed rule to enforce 25 existing statutory conscience protections for Americans, which protect people from being coerced into participating in activities that violate their consciences, such as abortion.
Protecting the lives of unborn children and honoring the dignity of the unborn has been a major priority of Attorney General Paxton. Currently, he is defending a new law in Texas on the humane disposition of fetal remains, and Senate Bill 8, which bans gruesome and inhumane dismemberment abortions. In another case, the attorney general’s office is fighting to remove Planned Parenthood from the state’s Medicaid program for video footage of actions that showed a willingness by some of Planned Parenthood’s officials to traffic in fetal body parts and manipulate the timing and methods of abortion.