Kimberly Guilfoyle Quits Greece Post After Texts Allegedly Sought $100,000 From a Trump Donor for Access

Kimberly Guilfoyle resigned as US ambassador to Greece on Tuesday after the White House asked her to go, following a report that The Wall Street Journal had reviewed messages allegedly showing her seeking $100,000 (£74,000) from a Trump donor in exchange for access to senior administration officials.

The speed of the fall told its own story. Six days before she was pushed out, Guilfoyle greeted Secretary of State Marco Rubio with a public hug at the US Embassy in Athens on 7 October. By Thursday, standing beside her, Rubio responded sharply to a reporter who raised the allegations and did not confirm whether they were true. Days later she was gone.

'We have asked Ambassador Guilfoyle to resign,' White House press secretary Katie Zacharia told reporters on Tuesday, during her first briefing. Guilfoyle denied wrongdoing in a post on X, writing that the allegations were false and that she intended to 'vigorously defend' her name, reputation, and integrity.

A Hug in Athens, Then Silence

Rubio had called her a 'strong ambassador' after the first report surfaced. His change in public messaging within days raised questions about her support inside the administration. President Donald Trump said he had not spoken with Guilfoyle personally and offered a blunt reason for her removal. 'She was doing a good job, but we didn't like what we were reading,' he told reporters.

The $100,000 Request

The Wall Street Journal reported, citing hundreds of text messages, that Guilfoyle pressed Trump donor Eric Deters to wire $100,000 toward her American Express bill in July 2025, just days before her Senate confirmation hearing. The messages reviewed by the Journal showed her telling him the payment 'won't show up anywhere' if wired directly to American Express, and warning him to stop putting talk of money in writing.

Deters, a former Kentucky congressional candidate and longtime Trump supporter, told NBC News the arrangement was 'a quid pro quo' and said Guilfoyle offered to become his 'ride or die in the Trump world' if he paid. He said he never sent the money. Jesse Binnall, a lawyer for Guilfoyle, disputed the authenticity of the messages without citing specific inaccuracies, saying she was owed money for earlier speaking engagements and travel.

Access as Currency

The texts point to how proximity to power can be treated as a tradeable asset. Guilfoyle allegedly promised to lobby officials ranging from Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director Kash Patel to former Attorney General Pam Bondi on Deters's behalf, and contacted then-Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Commissioner Billy Long for him, according to the Journal. The State Department's inspector general is reviewing her activities and the embassy's work in Athens.

A Loyalist Discarded

Guilfoyle's path to Athens ran through the Trump family. Trump nominated her in December 2024, the same month she and Donald Trump Jr. publicly split after years as a couple. Confirmed by the Senate in September 2025, she became the first woman to serve as US ambassador to Greece. House Democrats have asked her for records tied to the alleged arrangement, keeping the questions alive even as she exits.