What Really Went Down Between Meghan, Harry, And Trump
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's new status as non-working members of the royal family officially begins on March 31, 2020. The couple was already living a new, more private lifestyle in Vancouver Island, Canada, but now they're making another shift. According to People, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex settled in Los Angeles with their young son Archie in March 2020. "They have been living in a secluded compound and haven't ventured out amid the coronavirus pandemic," People reported.
Markle grew up in LA, and her mother Doria Ragland still lives there, making it a natural choice to settle down there. That being said, the transition hasn't been without its hiccups. On March 29, 2020, President Trump took to Twitter to publicly declare that the U.S. won't pay for security protection for Meghan and Harry.
"I am a great friend and admirer of the Queen & the United Kingdom," President Trump tweeted. "It was reported that Harry and Meghan, who left the Kingdom, would reside permanently in Canada. Now they have left Canada for the U.S. however, the U.S. will not pay for their security protection. They must pay!"
Let's unpack what Trump meant by this and how Markle and Harry responded.
Meghan and Harry wasted no time responding to President Trump
The debate over who should fund Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's security has been ongoing ever since they announced "Megxit." Now that they've stepped back as senior members of the British royal family, their security costs won't be funded by the U.K. government. However, they're still internationally famous people with a high "threat and risk level," per their website.
In January 2020, there were reports that Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau tentatively agreed to fund half of the couple's security costs while they were living in Canada, per the Evening Standard . According to CBC, Trudeau later clarified that a decision had not yet been reached. Additionally, the outlet reports that the Canadian government had been providing Markle and Harry with "intermittent" security since November 2019, but that was because they were still technically working royals until the end of March 2020.
Now that the couple is living in the U.S., the debate has crossed the border. On Monday, March 30, 2020 — just one day after President Trump's tweet — a spokesperson for the Sussexes responded to the president's concerns. The spokesperson told Fox News: "The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have no plans to ask the U.S. government for security resources. Privately funded security arrangements have been made."
We probably won't find out any details anytime soon seeing as how giving out security details to the public would be pretty counterproductive. However, we're glad that this potential feud has been squashed so quickly.