WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump's administration has asked his ambassador to Greece Kimberly Guilfoyle to resign, the White House said Tuesday, amid allegations that she sought money from a Trump supporter and accepted lavish hospitality from wealthy Greek businessmen.
"We have asked Ambassador Guilfoyle to resign," Trump's new press secretary Katie Zacharia told reporters at her first White House briefing.
The announcement came a day after Trump acknowledged that he was considering dismissing Guilfoyle, a former Fox News host and ex-fiancee of his eldest son, Donald Trump Jr.
"Well, we're looking at it. Yeah, we're not happy," Trump told reporters Monday when asked about her future.
Guilfoyle has faced mounting scrutiny following a series of reports by The Wall Street Journal about her financial dealings and relationships with wealthy businessmen.
The newspaper reported that she asked Eric Deters, an influential Trump supporter, to pay off US$100,000 in personal credit card debt shortly before her Senate confirmation hearing in July 2025.
"Honey, please, I need you to get this done for me today," she wrote to Deters in a message accompanied by instructions for paying her credit card company, according to the Journal, which published screenshots of the exchanges.
Deters refused to make the payment, telling the newspaper that doing so would have cost him his marriage.
Guilfoyle's lawyer has disputed the authenticity of the messages and denied wrongdoing.
Luxury trips
The Journal also reported that Guilfoyle boasted of luxury trips and hotel stays funded by wealthy Greek businessmen, citing hundreds of messages, emails and other records, including recorded conversations.
She travelled to the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, aboard a private jet with Alexandros Exarchou, chief executive of Greek construction company Aktor Group, according to the newspaper.
Guilfoyle also spent Christmas at the exclusive Swiss ski resort of Gstaad with Greek shipping magnate Nikolas Tsakos and stayed at a luxury Paris hotel on a trip with him, with Tsakos footing the bill, the Journal reported.
The state department's inspector general is investigating whether Guilfoyle received improper gifts, according to US media reports.
The revelations emerged as secretary of state Marco Rubio visited Europe last week, including a stop in Athens, where he declined to comment on the allegations.
Guilfoyle, a prominent figure in Trump's Make America Great Again movement, was appointed ambassador after her engagement to Donald Trump Jr ended.
A former prosecutor and television commentator, she was previously married to California's Democratic governor Gavin Newsom.
It was not immediately clear whether Guilfoyle had agreed to step down following the White House request.