BY SRH
The left finally has a new issue to address, as the Kimberly Guilfoyle donor scandal widens—with JD Vance keeping his distance, a donor on a media tour, and a records demand sitting on the ambassador’s desk.
The implications of this scandal could reverberate through various political circles, raising questions about transparency and accountability in campaign financing. As the situation unfolds, it remains to be seen how other politicians will respond and whether the scandal will have lasting effects on upcoming elections. The allegation, reported by the WSJ late Wednesday, is that six days before her July 9, 2025, Senate confirmation hearing, Guilfoyle texted Trump donor Eric Deters on Signal and asked him to wire $100,000 to her American Express account in a way that would not leave a paper trail, while he was seeking her help getting the new administration’s attention on personal tax and legal problems. She promised, he says, to be his “Trump ride or die, forever and ever.” He did not pay. Her lawyer, Jesse Binnall, disputes that the messages are authentic and says any earlier money was for speaking fees. Deters says he owed her nothing.
Since Wednesday, the people who could shut it down have left it running. Vice President JD Vance, asked about selling access to a high-level official, said, “Obviously, I don’t love that,” then said he did not know the details.
Asked for a reaction to a government official asking someone to pay off debt in exchange for access to other officials, after reports of allegations involving U.S. ambassador to Greece Kimberly Guilfoyle, Vice President JD Vance said, “Obviously I don’t love that,” but declined to weigh in on the specific allegations. “Of course I don’t like anybody selling access to another government official, certainly a high-level government official,” Vance told CBS News’ @JenniferJJacobs, adding that he would like to “get the full story before offering a real opinion.”
— CBS News (@CBSNews) October 8, 2026
Secretary of State Marco Rubio, with Guilfoyle standing at the foot of his plane in Athens, refused to discuss it: “Guys, I’m not playing this game with you.” Deters went on MS NOW, CNN, TMZ and NewsNation and called the ask “absolutely a quid pro quo”. House Oversight ranking member Robert Garcia (D-Calif.) requested financial records and two years of communications from her, with a deadline of October for financial records and two years of communications, deadline Oct. 22. President Donald Trump has not commented. Guilfoyle’s only public post was about a speech.
Contents of the texts
On July 3, 2025, Guilfoyle allegedly wrote to Deters—a former congressional candidate from Kentucky—and said, “It won’t show up anywhere if you wire money to American Express.” This is according to messages that the journal acknowledged reviewing. American Express payment instructions were attached as a PDF. Subsequently, she wrote, “My darling, I am pleading with you to finish this task for me today,” accompanied by an emoji of praying hands. Before the hearing, she insisted on having the remaining balance paid off. The debts of a nominee are a standard part of any background investigation.
Through the WSJ,
No, Deters said no. According to what the Journal reported, he threatened to end his marriage if she paid. She allegedly offered a meeting to Billy Long, the IRS commissioner who was fired by Trump in August of that year, according to the Independent, which cited the Journal. She went on to say, “Eric, I truly wish you would stop papering all these things.” This was her way of telling Deters to quit making records. It’s risky and won’t help either of us, especially since you could just give me a signal.
Before the ambassadorship, there was a prior relationship between Deters and the woman. For events he planned in Kentucky beginning in 2020, Deters allegedly paid her three $100,000 appearance fees, for a total of $300,000. They subsequently discussed the possibility of paying her up to $1 million more if she could advance his cause within the administration. He griped about having “not received one favour” in a message he sent in June 2025. He has since clarified that his intention was to seek assistance in extraditing Atiq Durrani, a doctor from Ohio, from Pakistan, in relation to a case involving numerous patients from his practice. NewsNation published that story on Friday morning.
The inverse is true of Binnall’s story. According to his interview with The Washington Times, he stated that the Signal messages are not genuine, that Deters’ payments were for speaking engagements prior to the nomination, and that she “was owed a balance for travelling to and supporting these patriotic events.” There was no balance, according to Deters.
Speaking with MS Now, Deters says it was “absolutely a quid pro quo” and called Guilfoyle “a grifter”, adding, “I have no doubt [she] has done this to more than me. She’s doing it right now in Greece.” He’s since appeared on about half a dozen other networks which are clearly part of this push for a scalp.
Vance’s answer was intriguing… Presented with a hypothetical that tracked the report, he said he does not like anybody selling access to a government official, “certainly a high-level government official,” then retreated: He did not know whom the questioner meant, and “the details and the context inform the reality of the situation,” The Independent reported.
Rubio went the other way, then stopped. Before the trip, in a statement posted by the embassy in Athens, he called her “an incredibly effective advocate for the President’s agenda in Greece and across Europe.” On Thursday, leaving Athens, with Guilfoyle there to see him off, he would not say whether the Journal account was true. “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 for me.” He also said it was not the department’s job to answer a story a few hours old “when I’m sitting in another country,” The Hill reported. He would not say whether he would open an investigation.
Asked about WSJ reporting on Kimberly Guilfoyle—which includes her texts—Rubio turns his fire on the press: “I’m not playing this game with you.” “I don’t even know if it’s true or not true.” “You guys somehow 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.”
— Vera Bergengruen (@VeraMBergen) October 8, 2026
Garcia’s letter, which PBS was able to obtain, requests personal financial records and correspondence with Deters as well as with Trump officials, such as former Attorney General Pam Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel. “This alleged misconduct raises serious public corruption and national security concerns,” Garcia said. “If Trump Administration officials can be bought by donors, the American people suffer the consequences of corrupt leaders more concerned with their enrichment than the public good and vulnerable to blackmail by foreign intelligence services.” The Guardian was informed by the staff of Senate Foreign Relations ranking member Jeanne Shaheen that they are still looking for information. “Inappropriate uses of an official position” was the reason Shaheen had already written to Rubio.
Guilfoyle’s public reply was a post. Her first tweet since July, she shared Rubio’s speech at the Acropolis on Thursday, writing, “Our history, culture, and civilisation must be protected,” according to HuffPost. Deters, the texts, and the letter were not mentioned. When reporters questioned Rubio about the story, she was standing beside him.
Meanwhile, the Journal reported on September 25 that Guilfoyle had spent the spring pushing Bulgaria to use a joint venture with a Greek state-backed company to route U.S. liquefied natural gas through Aktor Group, a Greek construction company that is new to the gas trade. Christos Marafatsos, a 39-year-old registered lobbyist for Aktor who some foreign officials mistook for her chief of staff, was present with her in a meeting with the Bulgarian president. She had been flown there on a private jet by Aktor’s CEO. The Journal cited lobbying records that show Aktor paid Marafatsos $160,000 until June 2026 to help him gain access to the White House, the State, and Energy.
Guilfoyle allegedly told attendees at a March dinner in Athens that the United States could imitate the fall of a Romanian government in other nations, such as Greece: “We can do that to any country we want.” Energy Minister Stavros Papastavrou said, “We can do that here,” the Journal reported. That account was contested by her attorney. A menace was dismissed by Athens. The Greek administration was never at risk, as stated by government representative Pavlos Marinakis. Konstantinos Kyranakis, the general secretary of New Democracy, informed Kathimerini, “I was present,” asserting his attendance at the dinner. Greece was not at risk. A spokesperson from the US Embassy stated that Guilfoyle “adheres to all ethical standards set by the State Department.
Source: ZeroHedge
