Reports of inappropriate behavior – Trump asks ambassador to Athens to resign

The White House has called on the US ambassador to Greece to resign. Kimberly Guilfoyle has been asked to resign from her position, new government spokeswoman Katie Zacharia said on Tuesday. The diplomat reportedly behaved inappropriately and possibly unlawfully before and during her term in Athens.

US President Donald Trump expressed his displeasure with reports of Guilfoyle's behavior on Monday. “Well, we’re looking at it,” he replied to journalists who asked him at government headquarters whether he was considering firing the ambassador. “We are not satisfied.” The AP news agency had previously reported, citing government sources, that the US government was considering this step and that a decision was imminent.

The Wall Street Journal had reported on Guilfoyle's questionable behavior in several reports. Accordingly, immediately before the hearing for her confirmation as ambassador, Guilfoyle is said to have asked a donor and supporter of US President Donald Trump to cover a credit card bill for $100,000. In return, she promised him access to government representatives. She also allegedly threatened a representative of her host country and accepted inappropriate gifts.

Guilfoyle did not immediately comment on the reports. However, her lawyers David Schwartz and Jesse Binnall denied wrongdoing. The money she asked the Trump donor for was for unpaid public appearances and speaking events from the time before she was nominated as ambassador.

In the previous days, several Democrats had already called for a complete investigation - including Robert Garcia, the highest-ranking Democrat on the House of Representatives Oversight Committee. “This is the latest in a long line of corruption allegations surrounding the Trump administration, and we demand answers,” he said. If the allegations are true, it would be a case of blatant abuse of power.