Federal Judge Rules DACA is illegal By Gloria Rubac posted on July 28, 2021 Norma Gonzales, United We Dream Texas, lead organizer speaking at rally in Houston, July 19. In a slap in the face to hundreds of thousands of immigrants, a federal judge in Houston ruled July 16 that President Barack Obama had no authority to establish the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. This ruling bars the government from approving any new applications. Judge Andrew Hanen, appointed by George W. Bush in 2002, ruled in favor of Texas and eight other conservative states that sued to halt DACA, which currently provides limited protections to about 650,000 Dreamers (DACA participants). Fortunately, those Dreamers will not be affected but will have to continue to annually renew their status.