Abbott, after a decade as attorney general and seven years as a Texas Supreme Court justice, will be reintroducing himself to voters starting Sunday in a five-day, 10-city tour.  Abbott is known among tea party and Republican activists as a mentor of U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz and the co-pilot in Perry’s anti-Washington crusade. He’s raised more than $20 million so far for this campaign, with big chunks coming from conservative businessmen and investors who like his low-regulation mantra.

…In recent years, Abbott has repeatedly sued the federal government on topics ranging from the Affordable Care Act, insurance coverage for contraceptives, pollution emission standards, endangered species habitats and enforcement of the Voting Rights Act.