AUSTIN, Texas — Greg Abbott’s job as Texas’ top lawyer placed him in the line of fire last week when his likely Democratic opponent called on him to stop defending lawsuits over school funding and gay marriage.

State Sen. Wendy Davis said the attorney general should settle a lawsuit brought by 600-plus school districts who complain that lawmakers violated the state constitution by boosting standards while slashing per-student spending. She said Abbott was “defending the indefensible.”