Mayor is facing questions about his statements to the Senate

Mayor Amer Ghalib

By Charles Sercombe
Hamtramck Mayor Amer Ghalib may have made more than one misleading comment to U.S. Senators during his confirmation hearing to become ambassador to Kuwait.
As The Review first reported last Friday (Oct. 31), when Ghalib was asked repeatedly by senators whether he supported the movement to “Boycott, Divest, Sanctions” (BDS) to punish Israel for its military invasion of Gaza and treatment of Palestinians, he finally said he did not support it or vote on it.
(The Detroit News later picked up this story in its Sunday, Nov. 2 issue.)
While it’s true Ghalib did not vote on the council resolution supporting BDS because he was not required to as mayor, he said, “I fully support it, and we can move and vote on this resolution.”
Ghalib even said, at the May 28, 2024 meeting, that he had a hand in forming the resolution.
“Thanks to the team who worked on this resolution,” Ghalib said. “We had to edit it, and modify it to be as clear and legal as possible after consulting with our attorney and other attorneys as well. So, thank you for working so hard to support the Palestinian people.”
That was not the only questionable statement from Ghalib during his Senate confirmation hearing.
Sen. Pete Ricketts (R-Nebraska) asked Ghalib if he “condemned” a comment by a member of the city’s Planning Commission, Nasr Hussain, who said in a Facebook post that the Holocaust was “God’s advance punishment of the ‘Chosen People’ for the savagery they’re committing today against the innocent Palestinians children and civilians?”
Ghalib insisted that he did “condemn” Hussain’s comment, and added: “I clearly said to the media that I condemned what he said, and I don’t agree with him.”
Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Connecticut) further pressed Ghalib on the issue, saying the Senate Foreign Relations Committee has not “seen any evidence” of Ghalib “condemning” Hussain’s comment.
“Is there evidence you condemned that (comment) at the time? Murphy asked.
Ghalib said “I did tell the media that I don’t agree with them.”
Murphy then asked Ghalib to submit “those media reports,” and Ghalib said he would.
The Review Facebook messaged Ghalib as to whether he had submitted the evidence requested, but the mayor has not yet responded.
While Ghalib told the Senate commission that he had condemned Hussain’s comment, back in 2023 he did not use the specific word “condemn.”
Instead, he defiantly told The Review: “What do I have to do with his posts! I don’t have to comment on every resident’s opinion, otherwise I would have commented on some posts that insult Islam and other religions, which are posted frequently by some residents on that same Facebook group.”
The Review recently reached out to Ghalib about this apparent contradiction on whether he “condemned” Hussain’s Holocaust comment, and he took issue with the paper for not reporting what he also said, which is:
“His posts do not represent the city or the mayor.”
That comment begs the question of whether, for senators, it rises to the level of a “condemnation.”
In an online search, The Review could not find where he told a media outlet that said that he “condemned” the comment.
Ghalib was also asked, at the time of Hussain’s comment, whether he would seek to have him removed from the Planning Commission.
He told The Review:
“I don’t remove people based on their opinion on international affairs as long as they don’t violate rules and regulations of the city. I didn’t remove people whom I disagree with regarding politically controversial issues. They still serve in some boards and commissions as long as they keep their opinion away from their city job.
“I only removed those who challenged me and tried to undermine my power.”
Ghalib told the Senate commission that only the city council has the authority to remove Hussain since he is a council appointee, which is accurate.
According to the city’s website, he is still a member of the Planning Commission.
Although he is not an appointee of the mayor, Hussain worked on Ghalib’s mayoral campaign in 2021 and was paid over $2,000 by Ghalib for printed campaign material.
Both Hussain and Ghalib are Muslim immigrants from Yemen.
As for the backlash Ghalib has faced by critics and the media, he told The Review that, “Keep in mind that everything that’s happening now is making me more popular, and my voice is stronger and that’s not a good thing for those who hate me!”
Ghalib continued, saying: “At the end, I’m not someone who is desperate for a position, I’m happy to serve our country and our community from anywhere, and the community and the president are very supportive. That’s what matters the most.”
According to various media reports, it appears that Ghalib does not have enough support of both Democrats and Republicans who sit on the Senate Foreign Relations Commission.
Posted and updated Nov. 3, 2025