Who Is Hans von Spakovsky?

My VIP for this week is Hans von Spakovsky, a senior fellow at The Heritage Foundation. I chose him as my VIP because of his understanding of the U.S. Constitution.

When a lower court ruled against President Donald Trump about his activating California’s National Guard, the 9^th Circuit Court of Appeals acted within a few hours to block the ruling.

According to an article by Tyler O’Neil, von Spakovsky claimed that the quick action by the 9^th Circuit was because Trump clearly had the authority to take the action required. 

“Look, what the president did is something he is statutorily authorized to do, much less looking at his constitutional authority as commander-in-chief,” von Spakovsky told The Daily Signal in an interview Friday.

He cited 10 U.S.C. 12406, which allows the president to call the National Guard – which ordinarily falls under the purview of state governors – into federal service in three circumstances: invasion or threat of invasion, rebellion or threat of rebellion, and if the president cannot execute U.S. law with regular forces.

Trump invoked the third reason when he ordered the California National Guard to assist federal law enforcement in Los Angeles amid the riots. Immigration and Customs Enforcement had carried out raids to detain and deport illegal aliens, and agitators physically blocked them from doing so. Protests against the raids devolved into violence, as agitators attacked ICE agents, set vehicles ablaze, and looted retail stores.

After Trump activated the California National Guard, Gov. Gavin Newsom, D-Calif., filed a lawsuit challenging the action.

U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer, an appointee of President Bill Clinton and brother to former Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer, issued an order Thursday demanding that Trump turn control of the National Guard back to Newsom by Fridy afternoon.

The president appealed, however, and later that afternoon, a three-judge panel of the 9^th Circuit granted his request to stay the order….

“The 9^th Circuit moved almost immediately to stay the decision while they take a look at the case,” he noted.

Von Spakovsky also mentioned that the 9^th Circuit is “very liberal,” but he insisted, “This is really not a gray issue. The statute’s very clear.” …