PRINCE Harry will have to leave the US if his visa row continues – and Trump will boot him out, an expert claimed.
The Duke of Sussex, 40, has faced a fresh blow in his two-year visa battle and esteemed royal author Phil Dampier said Harry is “hanging on a bit by the skin of his teeth”.
A royal expert claimed Harry could be forced out of the US amid his latest visa row[/caption]
Phil Dampier told The Sun the duke is ‘hanging on a bit by the skin of his teeth’[/caption]
A judge ruled last month that the dad-of-two’s visa documents would not be made public despite his admission that he took drugs.
The duke’s reference to taking cocaine, marijuana and psychedelic mushrooms in his book Spare prompted a conservative Washington, DC think tank to question why he was allowed into the US in 2020.
But now The Heritage Foundation have filed a 13-page motion to the court on Tuesday seeking to reopen the case.
They argue “iron-glad guardrails” were broken and certain evidence should have been reviewed in court, which were not, which meant their ability to build a case against Harry’s appeal were “severely compromised”.
The latest development may see Harry forced out of the US, if it is revealed he lied on his visa application forms.
With the US Elections drawing nearer, there are also fears Donald Trump could kick the duke out of the States if he were to become president.
Royal expert Phil Dampier told The Sun: ” This has been going on for about two years now.
“The Heritage Foundation, which is a think tank in Washington, has really got their teeth into this I think they feel that Prince Harry has been treated differently from other people who’ve applied for visas to stay in the States.
“Basically I think they’re trying to keep this going because we’ve got the US Election coming up in just a couple of weeks time and of course, if Donald trump gets back in that could be bad news for Harry and Meghan, because he is very much anti them.
“I think that’s fairly well documented that they don’t like him, and he doesn’t particularly like them.
“I think up until now Harris very much had the protection of the of the Biden Administration.
“At the moment he’s hanging on a bit by the skin of his teeth. It’s the sort of thing which, if it goes the other way, it might push him back into coming back to the UK.”
Speaking of where the couple could potentially move to, the expert suggested Meghan may pose problems.
“I don’t think Meghan, if she had her way, would set foot again in this country,” he said.
“She knows she’s fairly unpopular. I think she sort of burnt too many bridges.
“What makes it difficult, of course, is the children. It means that Archie and Lilibet are growing up in America, not seeing, not seeing the king and not seeing their cousins.
“They’ve lost Frogmore Cottage, of course, which was their home at Windsor, and on his fleeting visits that he’s been over recently Harry’s been staying in hotels as opposed to royal residences, so it’s difficult to know where he’d go.”
Mr Dampier said their latest Portugal home, near to Princess Eugenie and her husband Jack Brooksbank may be an option.
“It would give them a European base, and would enable him to come and go to the UK fairly, frequently to do his Invictus Games, duties, and still all sorts of other things,” he said.
But the royal author also suggested Harry may be longing to return home.
“I think he’s definitely been showing in recent weeks and months that he does want to come back to the UK and see some of his old friends build some bridges again, and long term, possibly make it up with his family,” he continued.
“I certainly can’t see it happening quite possibly for many, many years with his brother, Prince William.
“I don’t think he’s going to be welcome there, but possibly with the King it might be sooner rather than later.”
Harry has been applauded for his recent solo ventures, including his WellChild Awards appearance and successful trip to Lesotho.
Mr Dampier hinted that this could indicate there will be more “things separately from Meghan” in the future.
“But what it means in terms of them settling down anywhere, to be honest is anyone’s guess,” he added.
A spokesperson for the Sussexes has been contacted for comment.
Harry’s visa row
By Ethan Singh
IN September a judge ruled Harry’s visa documents would NOT be made public despite his admission that he took drugs.
Harry’s reference to taking cocaine, marijuana and psychedelic mushrooms in his book Spare prompted a conservative Washington, DC think tank to question why he was allowed into the US in 2020.
However, in a major boost for the Duke of Sussex, Judge Carl Nichols said Harry had a “reasonable privacy interest” in relation to his US immigration paperwork and therefore it should stay private.
The judge did, however, agree Harry had revealed “intimate details” of his life in his memoir – which included a description of his private parts freezing.
And Harry’s privacy interests were somewhat diminished by him being a public figure, the judge said.
The decision comes after Judge Nichols spent five months reviewing Harry’s immigration file as part of a case brought by the Heritage Foundation.
The organisation sued the Department of Homeland Security after it refused a Freedom of Information request to see immigration files on Harry — now a US resident.
Heritage claims Harry may have lied on the forms under the section which asks if you have been a drug user.
Now, in his ruling seen in court documents today, Judge Nichols said “the public does not have a strong interest in disclosure of the duke’s immigration records”.
His judgement added: “Like any foreign national, the duke has a legitimate privacy interest in his immigration status.
“And the duke’s public statements about his travel and drug use did not disclose, and therefore did not eliminate his interest in keeping private, specific information regarding his immigration status, applications, or other materials.”
At the court in Washington, D.C., Judge Nichols noted that Harry’s memoir ‘Spare’ sold more than 1.4 million copies on its first day on sale and became a New York Times bestseller.
Judge Nichols said that the book “shares intimate details of his life” including “numerous instances” where Harry took drugs.
In the view of the judge, Harry had a “reasonable privacy interest in his immigration records”.
Judge Nichols said Heritage is “partially correct that as a public figure, the Duke’s public statements tend to diminish his privacy interests compared to ordinary foreign nationals admitted to the United States“.
The opinion states: “But it (Heritage) goes too far in arguing that the privacy interest is so diminished by his public statements as to be de minimis (Latin for very small).”
Judge Nicholas added the Duke’s public statements about his drug use did not eliminate his interest in keeping private information about his immigration status.
Heritage’s argument that revealing Harry’s paperwork would shed light on the workings of DHS “fails”, the ruling states.
“For the reasons discussed, the public does not have a strong interest in disclosure of the Duke’s immigration records”, the order states
The judge said some documents submitted to him by DHS were “of particular relevance” but the sentence was followed by a large paragraph that is redacted.
Another large section of ‘particularly relevant’ information was also redacted.
DHS has handed over Harry’s immigration paperwork in April for Judge Nichols to review.
He wanted to see the ‘particular harm’ that would arise from the material being made public.
Judge Nichols told Homeland Security its arguments so far, including during a hearing in February, were ‘insufficiently detailed’ for him to decide.
