Marco Rubio refused to address a Wall Street Journal report alleging Ambassador Kimberly Guilfoyle asked a Trump donor to pay a $100,000 bill, as Democrats pressed for an investigation.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio shut down questions in Athens on Thursday about fresh allegations against U.S. Ambassador to Greece Kimberly Guilfoyle, telling reporters he would not treat anonymous-source journalism as settled fact while standing on foreign soil.
PBS NewsHour reported that Rubio spoke at the foot of his plane before leaving Greece, with Guilfoyle looking on, after a Wall Street Journal story published late Wednesday claimed she had engaged in improper and possibly illegal conduct before taking the post.
The Journal story, as described in that account, said Guilfoyle asked a donor and supporter of President Donald Trump to pay a $100,000 credit card bill just before her confirmation hearing and promised him access to administration officials if he did.
Guilfoyle has denied any wrongdoing. Rubio said he knew of the report, had no idea whether it was true, and would not address it.
Pressed by reporters, Rubio went further than a simple no-comment. He challenged the habit of treating leaked claims as proven truth.
Rubio told reporters:
"You guys walk around thinking that because some source told you something and you reported it, it's the gospel. It's not the gospel. It's not the gospel for me. That's not the way we do things."
That stance matched what he said a day earlier. At a joint news conference Wednesday with the Greek foreign minister, Rubio said he would not address the allegations while visiting a foreign country.
He also defended the mission and its chief in plain terms.
Rubio said:
"Suffice it to say our embassy here is doing a great job. Our ambassador has been a strong ambassador here."
He would not say whether he was prepared to open an investigation.
The credit-card allegation did not arrive in a vacuum. Last month the Wall Street Journal reported separate claims that Guilfoyle acted improperly while serving as the top U.S. envoy in Greece.
Those earlier claims held that she told guests at a reception the United States could undermine the Greek government if it chose to, promoted the business interests of one Greek construction and energy company, and allowed that company’s lobbyist into private diplomatic meetings.
Congressional Democrats were already looking into those earlier Journal claims. The top two Democrats on the House Foreign Affairs and Senate Foreign Relations committees have called for an investigation into Guilfoyle.
No charges, formal State Department probe, or completed inquiry were described as underway in the reporting from Athens. What the public record shows so far is an ambassador’s denial, a Cabinet secretary’s refusal to litigate anonymous claims abroad, and opposition lawmakers demanding a probe.
Guilfoyle is a former Fox News Channel host and California prosecutor. She was once engaged to Donald Trump Jr. President Trump named her to the Greece post, and she was on hand in Athens as Rubio departed.
Rubio used the Greece trip for more than alliance management. He delivered a speech calling for European countries to return to what he described as their civilizational roots, a broader message delivered while the ambassador questions swirled in the background.
The Journal’s latest account centers on conduct alleged before her confirmation, not a verdict. The donor’s name was not provided in the Athens reporting. Neither were primary documents, bank records, or on-the-record witnesses beyond the paper’s sourcing as summarized there.
Rubio’s public line stayed consistent across two days: he would not chase the story on foreign soil, he would not anoint anonymous claims as fact, and he judged the embassy and its ambassador to be performing well.
Democrats want an investigation. Rubio would not say he is ready to launch one. Guilfoyle denies wrongdoing. The gap between those positions is the entire fight.
American diplomacy abroad cannot run on every leaked tip the press elevates into a crisis, and a secretary of state who refuses to treat anonymous copy as scripture is doing the job voters hired the administration to do.
