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Donald Trump said he is considering firing Kimberly Guilfoyle, his embattled ambassador to Greece, following reports of inappropriate conduct during her tenure.
The US diplomat was accused in a series of media reports of accepting gifts in the line of duty and of offering to connect a wealthy donor with members of the Trump administration in exchange for paying off her credit card debt.
When asked Monday whether he would fire former Fox News host Guilfoyle, Trump told reporters he was “looking into it,” before adding, “We’re not satisfied.”
The Wall Street Journal reported in recent weeks that Guilfoyle, who was once engaged to the president’s eldest son, promoted a Greek energy group – which allowed her to travel on a private jet – while in office, and claimed she offered to help a wealthy donor if he paid a $100,000 American Express bill.
During a visit to Athens last week, Secretary of State Marco Rubio evaded questions about the reports, saying he did not know whether the allegations were true. Vice President JD Vance, when asked about the reports at a press conference last week, said: “Obviously I don’t like it. »
“Of course I don’t like anyone to sell access to another government official, and certainly a high-ranking government official,” Vance told reporters before adding that he wanted to have “the full story” before commenting further.
In a statement, Guilfoyle’s lawyers denied she had engaged in corruption and said she had simply asked a “delinquent client” at her job before joining the government to pay an overdue bill. They added that she ultimately did not connect him with administration officials.
They also said any use of private aircraft during her tenure as ambassador was appropriate and authorized by the State Department.
Guilfoyle was a “trailblazer” who provided “American leadership on energy and the advancement of American energy security interests across Europe, setting the priorities of her tenure under President Trump,” the lawyers added.
Some of Guilfoyle’s remarks caused political unrest in Europe, after she allegedly suggested the United States could overthrow governments.
According to the WSJ, she alluded to the imminent collapse of the Romanian government during an exchange with the Greek energy minister.
“We can do this in any country we want. We can do it here,” she said, according to the newspaper. The minister responded that the United States could not replace Greece’s elected government.
Guilfoyle spoke about Romania in these terms on March 18 at an official dinner at the US embassy in Athens attended by more than a dozen people, including politicians, embassy staff and military personnel, a person familiar with the matter told the FT.
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