Abortion providers like Planned Parenthood and their affiliates can’t possibly communicate this message effectively because of their inherent conflict of interest. If teenagers consistently viewed sex as something to be saved for marriage, Planned Parenthood would lose abortion business.

In “Lone Star Blues” (Op-Ed, Feb. 20), Richard Parker writes that “turning Texas blue — or even purple — is going to be a lot harder than most folks imagine.” He points out that Democratic Party leaders are hanging their Stetsons on the increase in Hispanic voters in the state. But there is another critical element for anyone seeking electoral success in Texas: women. They are fed up with the backward policies coming out of Austin — and by the way, women make up a majority of the growing population of Hispanic voters in Texas.

You can do polling and find that people who self-describe as pro-life actually believe in the rights of women to have access to abortion. These political labels mask what’s actually happening in this country.

Roe v. Wade paved the way for the loss of more than 54 million innocent lives, with more than a million added to that total with each passing year. This catastrophic loss of life is a grim testament to judicial activism, and a tragic stain on our national conscience. In Texas, we’ve worked hard to strengthen our abortion laws to the greatest extent possible under Roe v. Wade. We will continue working to empower families and protect our children’s future, until the day abortion is nothing more than a tragic footnote in our nation’s history.

Every pregnancy is different. No politician can possibly decide what is best for a woman and her family in every circumstance. It is especially outrageous to take options away from women who could be in tragic situations.