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Opponents of abortion have had reason for optimism this year. With Republicans in control of the U.S. Capitol and a president who embraces their cause, access to the procedure has appeared in greater jeopardy than it has in years. (Zavis, 8/2)

Leading progressive groups issued a "statement of principles" Wednesday urging the Democratic Party to embrace abortion rights and to reject "pro-life" Democratic candidates in 2018. The statement comes after Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Chairman Rep. Ben Ray Luján (N.M.) told The Hill the party wouldn't withhold financial support from Democratic candidates that oppose abortion rights. (Hellmann, 8/2)

Planned Parenthood’s Virginia affiliate plans to spend $3 million to help elect Democrat Ralph Northam as the state’s next governor. The organization’s Virginia political action committee, working with Northam, plans to deploy canvassers to knock on 300,000 doors, send mailers to 400,000 homes and run digital and radio ads. (Nirappil, 8/2)

The Trump administration’s proposed reversal of a requirement that health insurers cover contraception relies on the work of religious researchers who dispute a fundamental public health tenet — that easier access to birth control reduces the rate of unintended pregnancies. The proposed change to the Obama-era mandate leans heavily on the philosophy that increasing access to contraception will encourage sexual activity, while discounting newer, highly reliable forms of long-acting contraception that have been credited for reducing teen pregnancy and abortion. (Ebbert, 8/2)