A federal judge in Texas heard arguments Thursday in a lawsuit led by nine Republican states to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA. A new version of the 2012 Obama-era program was presented by advocates as they fight to salvage the relief, which has provided temporary protection from deportation and work authorization to hundreds of thousands of immigrants brought to the U.S. as children. The judge presiding the case, Andrew Hanen, previously declared DACA unlawful in 2021, blocking all new applications while appeals are resolved in court. A ruling deciding DACA’s fate isn’t expected for months, and the case is likely to head to the Supreme Court.