The Senate on Thursday confirmed Kimberly Guilfoyle, a former prosecutor and prominent Republican political figure, as the next United States ambassador to Greece.
Her nomination was approved as part of a package of 48 candidates advanced by the Republican majority, which invoked a procedural shortcut known as the “nuclear option” to speed the process.
The maneuver allowed the Senate to clear dozens of pending nominees at once, sidestepping the protracted floor debates that have slowed confirmations in recent months.
Ms. Guilfoyle’s appointment, originally expected earlier this year, was slowed after Democrats objected to the Republican majority’s handling of what Mr. Trump called his “big and beautiful bill,” a sweeping legislative package.
The delay drew Mr. Trump’s ire, in part because Ms. Guilfoyle is regarded as part of his political inner circle, and also because the American embassy in Athens — a key post in a geopolitically sensitive region — remained without a confirmed ambassador.
“If the Senate had continued at the pace that we’ve been proceeding at through the month of July there would still be hundreds of empty desks in the executive branch on President Trump’s last day in office in 2029,” Senator John Thune of South Dakota, the Republican leader, said on Thursday.
Her assignment in Athens will place her at the center of a strategically important relationship, as Washington looks to deepen defense, energy, and maritime ties with Greece at a moment of volatility in the Eastern Mediterranean.
Source: tovima.com
