Family · Statewide · TX · August 29, 2026
Federal Judge Again Blocks Texas AG From Enforcing Anti-Drag Show Law
What Alinsky tactic is being used
3 of the thirteen rules are in play here — campaigns rarely run just one.
Rule 4
“Make the enemy live up to its own book of rules.”
The whole ruling is the state being held to its own rulebook: Hittner did not weigh whether drag is wholesome, he asked whether SB 12's own words — 'lewd,' 'prurient interest in sex,' 'performer,' who 'controls' a commercial venue — give an ordinary Texan notice of what is forbidden, and found they do not. The gap the plaintiffs exploited was real and was left in the statute by its drafters, which is why the Fifth Circuit's February 25, 2026 vacatur bought the state nothing on the merits. A law aimed at the 2022 Plano incident was written broadly enough to reach theater and comedy, and that drafting failure, not the policy goal, is what lost.
Counter-Rule 4 · Radical Integrity
Close the gap between stated values and actual practice before anyone else finds it. This tactic only works where the gap is real.
Read Section One as enacted — Health and Safety Code Chapter 769 — alongside Penal Code Section 43.28, and note for yourself which terms are actually defined and which are not; it takes twenty minutes. Then apply the same standard at home: if your church or school has a facility-use policy about sexualized content in front of minors, check that it defines its terms and names who decides, rather than relying on 'we all know what we mean.' Ask your legislator's office for definitional language, not louder language.
Rule 3
“Whenever possible, go outside the expertise of the enemy.”
The fight has been moved onto ground where conviction is useless: standing 'not dispensed in gross,' Moody v. NetChoice's substantial-overbreadth arithmetic, Roy v. City of Monroe's vagueness test. The Fifth Circuit dismissed most plaintiffs for lack of standing and left only 360 Queen Entertainment against the Attorney General — a procedural outcome, not a moral one — and the case has now turned on more than 230 pages of supplemental briefing about test frameworks. A supporter of the law who argues only that children should not see erotic performances is not engaging what the case is actually about.
Counter-Rule 3 · Preparation and Width
Prepare the unfamiliar ground before you are dragged onto it. "I don't know, I'll find out and come back" beats an improvised answer.
Learn the three-section structure before you speak on this: Section One (Chapter 769) is civil penalties up to $10,000 against commercial premises and is what the injunction covers; Section Two is Local Government Code 243.0031, the local-regulation authority; Section Three is the Class A misdemeanor in Penal Code 43.28. Track the docket yourself on CourtListener rather than relying on either side's press release. When asked something you have not read — whether the criminal section is still enforceable, say — answer 'I don't know, I'll find out.'
Rule 10
“The major premise for tactics is the development of operations that will maintain a constant pressure upon the opposition.”
This statute has never had a settled operative life: enjoined by a temporary restraining order in August 2023, permanently enjoined September 26, 2023, vacated on appeal November 6, 2025 and again February 25, 2026, briefly enforceable, enjoined again August 25, 2026, with an appeal promised but no notice filed. Three years of motion has produced no merits ruling on whether the law is constitutional, and attrition on the litigation calendar is doing what no single ruling did. Paxton's announced appeal keeps the cycle going; the plaintiffs' rehearing petitions kept it going before that.
Counter-Rule 10 · The Long Game
Plan in decades against a campaign built on attrition. Succession and endurance beat any single victory.
Plan in sessions and years rather than news cycles: write down the three things you actually want (defined statutory terms, a local ordinance under 243.0031, a facility-use policy at your own church) and check each one every six months. Ask your legislator specifically about the next regular session's filing deadline for a redrafted definitions bill. Do not treat the August 25 order or any appeal of it as the end of the matter — record the docket number and check it quarterly.
Chapter 3 sets out the rules; Chapter 15 answers each of them in turn. This is that pairing applied to this story.
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