Trump ousts US ambassador to Greece amid corruption allegations

John M. Donnelly, CQ-Roll Call on Oct 13, 2026

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WASHINGTON — Kimberly Guilfoyle, the U.S. ambassador to Greece, stepped down Tuesday shortly after President Donald Trump asked her to resign her post.

Guilfoyle’s ouster came on the heels of recent press reports that she had engaged in potentially improper or illegal behavior.

Those actions reportedly included accepting improper gifts and services and offering to use her influence inside the administration to help a Trump donor with tax and legal affairs if he paid $100,000 to cover a credit card bill for her.

In a social media post announcing her resignation, Guilfoyle described the allegations against her as “false.”

“I intend to vigorously defend my name, my reputation, and my integrity,” she said.

But despite Guilfoyle’s denials, Trump decided he had seen enough.

“We have asked Ambassador Guilfoyle to resign,” White House press secretary Katie Zacharia told reporters Tuesday morning, prior to Guilfoyle’s announcement. “She has been a wonderful asset to the team, and we wish her well.”

The administration’s frustration with Guilfoyle was apparent Monday when Trump, asked about the allegations, said: “Well, we’re looking at it. We’re not happy.”

At the same time, congressional support for Guilfoyle in both parties had appeared to drop off sharply in recent days.

Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso, R-Wyo., speaking on CBS News’ “Face the Nation” on Oct. 11, called the reports “very troubling.”

The top Democrats on the foreign policy panels also registered their concerns in recent days.

Rep. Gregory W. Meeks, D-N.Y., ranking member on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, wrote a letter to Guilfoyle on Friday demanding that she testify to the committee about the allegations.

Meeks’ letter cited Wall Street Journal reports about her allegedly asking the donor, Eric Deters, for help paying her credit card. Meeks also noted additional Journal reporting that Guilfoyle had told a Greek government minister that the United States had brought about the collapse of the Romanian government and could do the same in Greece.

He also cited disclosures about the ambassador’s close relationship with lobbyist Christos Marafatsos and her advocacy on behalf of Aktor Group, a Greek company for which he lobbied.

“Together, these reports paint a disturbing picture of an ambassador using her official position and access to senior political appointees to advance the private interests of those willing to pay,” Meeks wrote.

On Friday, Meeks wrote the State Department’s acting inspector general seeking an investigation of whether the ambassador “violated federal law, Department regulations, and/or ethics requirements.”

Meanwhile, Sen. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, wrote to Secretary of State and national security adviser Marco Rubio on Oct. 1 about the matter.

In her letter, Shaheen put to Rubio a series of questions about some of Guilfoyle’s alleged actions, which Shaheen said “risk undermining the credibility of U.S. government officials working abroad on behalf of U.S. national security interests and the American people.”