Ken Paxton, the attorney general of Texas, announced Monday that he is "instructing" independent public school districts statewide to follow a state law that requires every classroom to display the Ten Commandments, starting Sept. 1—setting up what is likely to be a controversial start to the new academic year.

Aaron Reitz and Chip Roy, positioning themselves as Paxton’s ideological heirs, have served as top aides for both the attorney general and Cruz.