WASHINGTON — President Trump ousted his embattled ambassador to Greece, Kimberly Guilfoyle, new White House press secretary Katie Zacharia revealed Tuesday.
“We have asked Ambassador Guilfoyle to resign,” Zacharia told reporters at the end of her first briefing Tuesday — shortly before the envoy to Athens issued a statement confirming she will step down.
“She has been a wonderful asset to the team, and we wish her well.”
Guilfoyle, the former fiancee of Donald Trump Jr. and the ex-wife of Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom has been accused of improperly pressuring a donor to pay off a $100,000 credit card bill in exchange for favors, soliciting and receiving perks from Greek businessmen and mistreating staff with diva-like antics.
“While my time as Ambassador may be coming to an end, my commitment to President Trump, the America First movement, and the country I love will never end,” Guilfoyle wrote in a lengthy tweeted statement in which she touted her actions in office and professed her innocence.
“These allegations are false, and I intend to vigorously defend my name, my reputation, and my integrity,” she wrote.
“I have dedicated my professional life to fighting for justice, standing up for what is right, and defending the values that make America exceptional. I will not allow false accusations to define my decades of public service.”
Trump foreshadowed the decision on Monday, saying “we’re not happy” when a reporter asked if he would fire the former Fox News personality.
The president has long expressed fondness for Guilfoyle — even likening her to Evita Peron, the former first lady of Argentina who inspired a Broadway musical and 1996 movie starring Madonna — after her boisterous performance at the 2020 GOP convention.
Earlier this year, Trump shockingly revealed his ribald nickname for the serial political plus-one, calling her “Kim-ber-lay” as she visited the White House.
Guilfoyle’s downfall was all-but-assured after a devastating series of investigative reports and her failure to make a clear public defense of her conduct.
“If she survives this, she’s officially beaten ‘Trump World’ in legendary mode, defeated the final boss and unlocked an achievement no previous player thought was possible,” a person close to the president quipped to The Post on Monday.
The cascade of disclosures was set off by The Wall Street Journal reporting that Guilfoyle asked an American businessman and former Republican congressional candidate, Eric Deters, to pay off a $100,000 American Express bill ahead of her Senate confirmation hearing last year in exchange for her advocacy on his behalf with the Justice Department and IRS.
The 57-year-old was already under fire from congressional Democrats over her links to Christos Marafatsos, a Maryland-born lobbyist for the Greek construction firm Aktor Group. The Journal reported last month that Guilfoyle routinely promoted Aktor as a potential supplier of US-produced natural gas to southeastern Europe — with Marafatsos often sitting in on meetings to the extent that he was often mistaken for the ambassador’s chief of staff.
Then, over the weekend, the same outlet reported that Guilfoyle attended this past January’s World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, traveling on the private jet of Aktor CEO Alexandros Exarchou.
After arriving at the swanky gathering, the ambassador harangued her way into a dinner organized in honor of first son Eric Trump by Greek House Davos.
“You know, I can deliver the world to you. Which you deserve,” she was recorded telling an American businessman who was on the guest list, later adding: “I’m going to make you a lot of f—ing money.”
The ambassador later raged against the event’s organizer, saying: “You don’t have the f—ing US, you know, ambassador to Greece not come. She should be kissing my f—ing ass.”
On the same trip, Guilfoyle bragged about her friendship with shipping tycoon Nikolas Tsakos, who has been reported as supporting her jet-setting lifestyle.
“I see Nikos every f—ing day,” she said. “I’m flying with him to Paris. I’m with him for a f—ing week. … He loves me. Honey, I spent Christmas with him. New Years. OK? Gstaad. Like, everywhere.
