2 hours ago
1
While he may not be quite as popular as he was, Prince Harry still has a lot of fans in the US. Unfortunately, Donald Trump is not one of them: the president has never had anything nice to say about the Duke of Sussex and once claimed that the Biden administration was “too gracious” to the British immigrant. Which might not be a big deal were it not for the fact that some Trumpers have long been chomping at the bit to get Harry deported.
The Heritage Foundation, a rightwing thinktank famous for masterminding Project 2025, a roadmap for Trump’s second term, has been obsessed with Harry’s immigration status ever since he released his memoir Spare. This isn’t because they thought it was a crime against literature (certainly debatable) but because Harry talked about using illegal drugs. And anyone who has ever tried to get a US visa knows that admitting to taking illegal drugs is a really great way to ensure you never get into the country. So the question is: did Prince Harry lie on his immigration forms or was he granted special treatment? The Heritage Foundation has been engaged in a long legal battle to try to get Harry’s visa application made public in order to answer that question.
I’m hardly a fan of the Heritage Foundation, but I do think it’s in the public’s interest to know these details. Last year, a judge disagreed. Now that there’s a new regime in Washington, however, that might change. It certainly doesn’t help Harry that Trump’s secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, Kristi Noem, is as attention-hungry and unpredictable as the president. Noem, who famously shot her own dog, has been making headlines by showing up at Trump’s deportation raids glammed up and photoshoot-ready in a bulletproof vest and an Immigration and Customs Enforcement baseball hat. She has also done recent media appearances in cowgirl gear and wearing a full border patrol uniform, earning her the nickname “Cosplay Kristi”. I wouldn’t put it past Noem to rock up to Harry’s Montecito mansion on horseback, dressed as George Washington, to haul him off and stick him in detention. But at least that would give him material for a new memoir.
Arwa Mahdawi is a Guardian columnist
-
Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here.
