Trump election win could see release of Prince Harry’s confidential immigration files amid long-running battle

Prince Harry’s immigration documents could finally be made public as he will no longer be protected by the Biden White House following Donald Trump’s stunning election victory.

A Trump presidency means the Heritage Foundation is more likely to win its long-running bid for the Duke of Sussex’s archives, which has so far been blocked by the outgoing president’s administration.

Speaking to DailyMail.com after Trump’s historic victory, Nile Gardiner, director of the Heritage Foundation’s Margaret Thatcher Center for Freedom, said he believes there is now a “strong possibility” that the think tank will successfully appeal can challenge the decision.

Harry’s visa application was first called into question after he admitted in his 2023 memoir that he used several drugs recreationally – something he should have disclosed in immigration documents.

A Trump presidency means the Heritage Foundation could now win its long-running bid to make Prince Harry’s visa records public

The right-wing think tank claimed that Harry’s admissions could have made him ineligible for entry into the US and sued the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) after the agency, which oversees immigration, denied a request for freedom of to make information about Harry’s files public.

In September, a judge ruled that the files would remain private for the time being – a decision that Heritage is now appealing.

‘I think there’s a good chance this could happen. It is the president’s prerogative,” Gardiner said.

“The new Secretary of Homeland Security could also order a review of Harry’s immigration application.

“There are several things that could happen, but it would be in the best interest of the American people for the Trump administration to release Prince Harry’s data for public scrutiny and for Harry to be held accountable.”

According to Gardiner, the Biden White House “has gone to great lengths to protect Prince Harry and that protection will end after the inauguration.”

“Releasing Harry’s immigration records would send a very strong message about applying the rule of law equally to all.

‘There is a clear public interest in their release. “If Harry has nothing to hide, he should support the release of the records,” he added.

Gardiner predicted that the files would be made public in the coming year and that there would be “increasing calls” for them from the Republican-controlled Congress.

The Duke of Sussex’s visa application was thrown into doubt after he admitted in his 2023 memoir that he used several drugs recreationally – which he should have disclosed in immigration documents. He is pictured with wife Meghan Markle in London in 2022

Trump has previously stated that he would “not protect” Prince Harry if he were to become president again

The feud between Trump and Harry dates back to the 2016 election, when the former president called Meghan “nasty” after she called him “divisive” and “misogynistic.”

During his speech in February, Trump said he “would not protect” Harry if he won a second term because he had “betrayed the Queen.”

‘That’s unforgivable. If it were up to me, he would be on his own,” Trump said.

Harry spoke about using drugs such as cannabis, cocaine and magic mushrooms in his 2023 memoir, ‘Spare’, as well as in his Netflix TV series

Asked about it in an interview with Nigel Farage, Trump said he would take “appropriate action” if it turned out Harry had lied.

Trump’s son Eric has been more blunt, saying his father would “happily” deport the duke — and that Britain wouldn’t want him either.

Chris Edelson, a government professor at American University, told DailyMail.com that Trump could “of course” remove Harry.

“Not in a normal system, but ours is no longer normal,” he said

“The president can do whatever he wants, as long as the people go along with it.”

But Michael Wildes, a New York immigration attorney who worked with former First Lady Melania Trump to get her parents a green card, said the former president’s views on immigration were smarter than people might think.

He said Trump had a “very sophisticated view of clients that come from significant interests and that a member of the royal family would certainly be treated in a more sophisticated manner.”

“He could let Harry stay as a favor to King Charles,” he said. ‘He may be able to pardon the prince for any domestic crimes.

Judge Carl Nichols (left) ordered the Department of Homeland Security to provide more information about why his immigration records had to be kept secret in March. Nile Gardiner of the Heritage Foundation led the freedom of information requests

In a court ruling in September, U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols said the court agreed that Prince Harry’s “privacy interest outweighs any public interest.”

The judge’s ruling states that Harry’s memoirs contain “intimate details of his life.”

“I have personally worked with Mr. Trump in the past on very delicate issues involving immigration and he literally holds a Trump card on these matters.”

Wildes, whose father was John Lennon’s immigration lawyer and managed to get him to stay in the US in 1975 despite authorities starting deportation proceedings over his British marijuana conviction, said Harry would have just a few days to to leave America if he did. on a visa that was revoked.

But if Harry gets a green card, he could undergo a special immigration process in which he would be entitled to a “very strong defense,” Wildes said.

Melissa Chavin, a British-based U.S. immigration lawyer, said it could be even easier for Trump to deport Harry if he was in the U.S. on an A-1 visa, which is intended for heads of state.

Chavin said: “All Trump has to do is tell his State Department that we will not accept what the British government says about Harry.

‘They might say this is only for working royals.

“They could say he is involved in espionage or terrorism, or that it is against foreign policy for him to be on drugs and in the country.

‘They can make him persona non grata – they can do whatever they want and the resolve is irreversible. No one can watch that.

“If Trump wants to be super vindictive, he can do that. That’s the scary thing that could happen to Harry.’