Gregory Wayne Abbott (born November 13, 1957) is an American attorney who has served as the 48th governor of Texas since January 20, 2015. A member of the Republican Party, Abbott previously served as the 50th attorney general of Texas from 2002 to 2015. He is the third governor of any U.S. state to permanently use a wheelchair. He is also the first disabled governor in Texas history.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton Last year on Oct. 27, the Texas Behavioral Health Executive Council voted unanimously to restore protections for LGBTQ and disabled clients to the Texas social workers’ code of conduct following two weeks of widespread backlash in response to the council’s vote to remove those protections.
That first vote came at the suggestion of Gov. Greg Abbott’s office. This week, however, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton — already under indictment and awaiting trial on securities fraud charges and now under investigation by the FBI on charges of abuse of power — issued an opinion saying the council did not have the authority to extend nondiscrimination protections to LGBTQ people.