Family · Nationwide · October 5, 2026
SCOTUS Opens Term With Cases on Religious Funding and Parental Rights
What Alinsky tactic is being used
2 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.”
Colorado's program is marketed as "universal," and the question presented in docket 25-581 points out that the state nonetheless grants numerous categorical and discretionary exemptions from its equal-opportunity rule — including for preschools serving only "children of color" or "gender-nonconforming children" — while denying one to religious providers. The case is being fought precisely in the gap between the state's stated neutral rule and its actual practice of handing out exceptions. That is the state's own book of rules being turned back on it.
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 the question presented at supremecourt.gov for 25-581 so you can describe the exemption list accurately rather than from memory. Then apply the same test at home: if your church or school says it serves anyone, ask the board for the written admissions and tuition-assistance policy and check that practice matches the wording. Close any gap in writing, by policy number, before someone else finds it.
Rule 3
“Whenever possible, go outside the expertise of the enemy.”
The parents in International Partners for Ethical Care v. Ferguson never got a ruling on parental rights at all — the Ninth Circuit held they lacked Article III standing, and that threshold question is what the Supreme Court granted on June 29, 2026. The fight was moved onto justiciability doctrine, ground where conviction counts for nothing and only concrete, documented, imminent injury counts. Most parents arguing from the heart would never see that move coming.
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 vocabulary before you need it: read the one-page question presented at supremecourt.gov for 25-840 and note that "standing" asks who may sue, not who is right. In your own state, get the actual shelter-notification statute and rule number in hand before a meeting, and when asked something you have not read, say "I don't know — I'll find the citation and come back" rather than improvising.
Chapter 3 sets out the rules; Chapter 15 answers each of them in turn. This is that pairing applied to this story.
Know where you stand
The free 4-minute assessment identifies your mountain and your institution’s capture phase — so alerts like this one arrive matched to where you actually stand.
Facing this yourself? Ask. Describe what is happening and get what the book, Scripture, and the law of your state say, with the exact words to use. Your first one is free.