Hamtramck Mayor Faces Intense Scrutiny During Ambassadorial Nomination Hearing
City of Hamtramck web site
Hamtramck Mayor Amer Ghalib navigated a challenging session on Capitol Hill as he appeared before the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations committee. The hearing was part of the process for his nomination as the U.S. ambassador to Kuwait.
During the session, both Democratic and Republican senators scrutinized Ghalib’s past social media activity, specifically posts that have been labeled as antisemitic. A notable exchange occurred between Ghalib and Senator Ted Cruz from Texas.
Senator Cruz inquired, “My question is, does the statement ‘all Jews are monkeys,’ does that qualify as antisemitism?” Ghalib responded, “I don’t agree with it, Senator. It’s definitely antisemitism. But clicking on it doesn’t mean I endorse it.” Cruz retorted, “Well, actually ‘Like’ means exactly that.”
Ghalib consistently refuted claims that he supported antisemitic views. He emphasized, “At the end I’m a Semite. The Arabs are Semites. We read history. How could we be antisemitic? Judge my actions, not my intention.”
Initially nominated by President Donald Trump in March after Ghalib, a Democrat, endorsed Trump during the previous election, his nomination has faced opposition. Several Republican senators expressed reservations about confirming him as ambassador to a crucial U.S. ally in the Middle East.
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