Why Donald Trump's win could be disaster for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
by Annabal Bagdi, Jennifer Newton, Nia Dalton, https://www.birminghammail.co.uk/authors/annabal-bagdi/ · Birmingham LiveDonal Trump has already declared a 'magnificent victory' in the US election. Although the votes are still being counted, Republicans are celebrating as the ex-president looks set to make a return to the White House.
But two people expected to be following the result of the presidential election carefully are Prince Harry and Meghan Markle - with the outcome potentially life-changing for the couple.
Democratic Kamala Harris has previously spoken out in support of Meghan - but the same can't be said for Trump. He has made a series of damning statements about Harry and Meghan during the election campaign.
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He even suggested the Duke of Sussex could be deported from the United States if he wins the keys to the White House, Mirror reports. Prince Harry has often been criticised by Trump since he and his wife quit as senior working royals and relocated to the US.
At the time of the last US election campaign between Trump and Joe Biden, the Sussexes appeared in a video urging Americans to 'vote against hate speech'. They did not refer to anyone by name but the remarks were interpreted as referring to Trump and therefore an endorsement of Biden.
Some claimed it was a breach of the Sandringham Summit agreement, which was written up when the couple quit their royal duties in 2020. Later, Trump spoke out saying he was 'no fan' of Meghan.
Recently, Harry found himself in the centre of a row over his visa - which allows him to live in California. A lawsuit from the conservative think tank the Heritage Foundation argued that the US Government should release records about the Duke's visa US application to show whether his previous drug use was disclosed.
This is after he admitted to using marijuana, cocaine and psychedelic mushrooms in his controversial memoir Spare. Before a ruling was made in the case, Trump raged at the Biden administration for maintaining the privacy of the prince's immigration application in order to 'protect Harry'.
He told the Express US: "I wouldn't protect him. He betrayed the Queen. That's unforgivable. He would be on his own if it was down to me."
During an interview with Nigel Farage on GB News, Trump was asked if there would be any 'special privileges' for Harry. The Republican candidate said: "No. We'll have to see if they know something about the drugs, and if he lied they'll have to take appropriate action."
Digging deeper, Mr Farage asked: "Appropriate action? Which might mean…not staying in America?" Mr Trump responded: "Oh I don't know. You'll have to tell me. You just have to tell me. You would have thought they would have known this a long time ago."
Last month, a judge made a ruling in the case saying that Harry's visa documents should remain private. But the Heritage Foundation has made another court filing arguing that it was not granted access to private submissions made to the judge by the Biden administration.
The 13-page motion, which was filed last month, said that the case was 'unique' and complex. But it said that there was 'ample evidence of agency bad faith' meaning this 'severely compromises [Heritage's] ability to prepare arguments on appeal'.
The lawsuit was originally brought by the Heritage Foundation after a Freedom of Information request for the Duke's records was rejected by the Department for Homeland Security (DHS). In his memoir, Harry confessed that cocaine 'didn't do anything for me', adding: "Marijuana is different, that actually really did help me."
He also told of an experience with magic mushrooms, saying: "I stared at the bin. It stared back. 'What-staring? ' Then it became... a head. I stepped on the pedal and the head opened its mouth. A huge open grin."
US visa applications specifically ask the individual about current and past drug use, which can have a detrimental impact on the progress of the application. Prolific drug use can lead to applications being rejected but immigration officers can use their discretion when issuing a visa.
But Trump's son Eric suggested Harry's visa would be safe because 'no one cares' about him and that his wife Meghan is 'pretty unpopular'. Speaking to MailOnline, Eric said: "Truthfully I don't give a damn about Prince Harry and I don't think this country does either.
"My father loved the Queen and I think the monarchy is an incredibly beautiful thing." He added: "I don't give a damn if he did drugs. It means nothing. I can tell you that our father and our entire family has tremendous respect for the monarchy."