DACA recipients have lived in the US for 20+ years, pay taxes, and can be deported any time a court ruling changes

A 30-year-old software engineer was brought to the US at age 3. They have lived here for 27 years. They went to American schools, speak only English, pay $40,000/year in federal taxes, and have never been to their 'home country' as an adult. They are a DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) recipient. Their status must be renewed every 2 years at a cost of $495. If DACA is struck down by a court (as Texas v. United States is attempting), they become deportable to a country they do not know, in a language they may not speak fluently, within 60-90 days. They cannot plan more than 2 years ahead. They cannot get a mortgage easily. They cannot start a company with venture funding because investors want founders who will definitely be in the country in 5 years. So what? There are 580,000 active DACA recipients who have lived in the US for an average of 20+ years. They are American in every way except legal status. They contribute $6.3B annually in federal taxes. But they live under permanent legal threat — one court ruling could end their authorization. This uncertainty is not just emotionally devastating; it is economically irrational. The US invested in their education (K-12, often college), they are in their peak productive years, and the immigration system is poised to deport them to countries that did not invest in them and do not want them. Why does this persist? DACA is an executive action, not a law. It can be rescinded by any president or struck down by any federal court. The DREAM Act (which would give DACA recipients a path to permanent residency) has been introduced in every Congress since 2001 and has never passed. It has majority support in polls (70%+) and in Congress but gets blocked by the same comprehensive-immigration-reform bundling that kills every immigration bill. 580,000 people's lives depend on a policy that has no statutory foundation.