Prince Harry's recent revelation that he is considering becoming a U.S. citizen has sparked a heated debate about whether the British royal should be required to renounce his titles in order to do so. A new poll conducted by Redfield & Wilton for Newsweek found that 44 percent of Americans believe the Duke of Sussex should lose his titles to gain citizenship, while only 23 percent feel the law should be changed to allow him to keep them.
The normal route to U.S. citizenship involves renouncing allegiance to any "foreign prince" and relinquishing royal titles. However, Prince Harry may have alternative options, such as following the path of Winston Churchill, who was made an honorary American by Congress. This route, though, would not grant him the right to vote or run for elected office.
Alphonse Provinziano, of U.S. law firm Provinziano & Associates, suggested that Prince Harry could launch a Supreme Court challenge to the law requiring him to give up his titles. "I think there's actually a challenge to this under the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment because it treats people differently," Provinziano told Newsweek. "If you're a natural-born U.S. citizen, you can acquire a title from a foreign government."
The issue is further complicated by the fact that Meghan Markle, Prince Harry's wife, has gained her Duchess of Sussex title through marriage and has maintained her U.S. citizenship. Yet, as a royal by birth, Prince Harry would be required to relinquish his titles to achieve the same status.
While the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have filed numerous lawsuits since 2019, a Supreme Court challenge to an aspect of U.S. law would be a new frontier for them. The matter may become more pressing if Donald Trump wins the 2024 presidential election, as he has indicated that he would not "protect" Prince Harry.
The Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank, is currently suing the Biden administration under the Freedom of Information Act to obtain Prince Harry's visa records. The organization seeks to determine whether the royal lied about his past drug use, which he described in his memoir, "Spare." The think tank has suggested that Prince Harry's experimentation with cannabis, magic mushrooms, cocaine, and ayahuasca might have been grounds for rejecting his visa.
In a recent interview with the Daily Express at the Conservative Political Action Conference, Trump stated, "I wouldn't protect him. He betrayed the queen. That's-unforgivable. He would be on his own if it was down to me."
Adding to the controversy, a judge has ordered the U.S. government to hand over Prince Harry's visa application as part of an ongoing court battle over the release of the documents. Judge Carl Nichols told the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) that its arguments were "insufficiently detailed" and instructed the agency to set out the contents of the Duke's immigration papers and explain the "particular harm" that would be caused by disclosing them.
The DHS is fighting to prevent the publication of the documents after Prince Harry revealed in "Spare" that he had taken various illegal drugs. The Heritage Foundation is seeking the release of his papers as part of a Freedom of Information request submitted last year.
In his memoir, Prince Harry admitted to using psychedelic drugs that allowed him to see "the truth" and escape the "red mist" of reality. The Heritage Foundation has challenged the DHS for months to release his visa documents, claiming that the Duke's drug use should have disqualified him from entering the U.S. under federal law.
Questions have been raised about whether Prince Harry lied about his drug use on his visa application or received favorable treatment from officials. However, a DHS lawyer recently argued that the admissions in "Spare" could have been embellished to "sell books," stating that "saying something in a book doesn't necessarily make it true."
As the legal battle over Prince Harry's visa application unfolds and the 2024 presidential election approaches, the British royal's path to U.S. citizenship remains uncertain. The outcome of the court case and the results of the election could have significant implications for Prince Harry's future in the United States and his ability to maintain his royal titles while pursuing American citizenship.
