‘Newsmaker of the Year’ changed city politics

By Charles Sercombe
As usual, trying to figure out who – or what – is our Newsmaker of the Year offers too many options.
Should it be the firing of City Manager Max Garbarino, police officer Dave Adamczyk, and the dismissal of Police Chief Jamiel Altaheri?
Or the ongoing accusations of election fraud via ballot harvesting by some candidates?
Or the accusation that two city councilmembers were not actually residents of the city?
Or, the unexpected decision of Hamtramck resident state Rep. Abraham Aiyash to not seek re-election? He was a champion of LGBTQ rights who steered millions of dollars back to his hometown.
Or, the decision to get rid of the hated parking meters on Jos. Campau?
Or, the last portion of Caniff being rebuilt and repaved, ending three years of inconvenience?
Heck, that was all just in the first few months of 2025, and the list goes on.
But, in looking back, the number one Newsmaker was Mayor Amer Ghalib – who, four years ago, was the city’s first Yemeni-American to be elected as mayor.
And his rise to the position of mayor also ushered in the political strength of the Yemeni community.
Ghalib, who is no longer mayor and who did not seek re-election last year, was the one person whose name appeared most often in The Review.
He was a news-making machine.
First, it was to announce his re-election bid. Here’s what Ghalib had to say on Facebook about his decision earlier in the year:
“Without hesitation or fear, I proudly announce my candidacy for Mayor of Hamtramck for a second term, and to continue to serve our community with honesty, dedication and sincerity, through this position, and through other prestigious future positions.”

Later, however, Ghalib withdrew from the election after being nominated by President Trump to be ambassador to Kuwait.

That journey took a number of twists and turns, until finally Ghalib got his confirmation hearing in October with the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
However, his dream to become an ambassador hit a wall of resistance from the get-go at his hearing when ranking committee member Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, a Democrat from New Hampshire, introduced all four ambassador nominees, including Ghalib.
Shaheen singled out Ghalib in her introductions by saying:
“I am very concerned about some of the statements that you have made — and, frankly, what appear to be antisemitic views.”
During the next 40 minutes, Ghalib faced a barrage of questions from both Democratic and Republic senators about his past comments.
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) was particularly cutting, and pressured Ghalib to explain why he called former Iraq leader Saddam Hussain a “martyr.”
It took Ghalib a few tries to clarify why he said that, finally saying: “In a moment of anger, I complimented Saddam because he kept Iran in check, and he — probably that’s the only positive thing he did in his life.”
He continued: “No question, he was a dictator. He committed a lot of crimes, including the invasion of Kuwait. And if that description in a moment of anger offended anybody, I’m willing to apologize, especially to the Kuwaiti people. I’m not very adamant about it.”
Cruz also took issue with Ghalib “liking” a comment on social media that compared Jews to “monkeys.”
Ghalib did not deny that he “liked” the comment, but said he had a “bad habit” of liking comments as a way of “acknowledging” that he received them.
“I don’t agree with it, senator,” Ghalib said. “Clicking on it doesn’t mean I endorse it.”
Cruz wasn’t buying that explanation, saying: “Well, actually, it means exactly that.”
Finally, Cruz said he wouldn’t vote for Ghalib to be ambassador, saying:
“For the record, your long-standing public positions are directly contrary to President Trump’s, and I will not be supporting your nomination.”
Ghalib later blamed the press for the resistance by the Senate committee, saying that the media reports were “very, very biased articles. You can tell when you read them. … The only thing left out is cussing me out. … But I want to send a message to the people – you know, the radical media.”
Ghalib also cryptically warned that those who were critical of his conservative cultural views will experience consequences, saying: “The future will hide a lot of surprises for you, and you are going to keep paying the prices.”
Since then, the Senate has never held a vote on his confirmation, and, in January, his nomination was returned to President Trump.
It wasn’t entirely over for Ghalib, who has said he still expects to get a job with the administration, presumably one that doesn’t require Senate confirmation. That job is expected to be announced sometime soon, if not this week after The Review went to press.
Ghalib’s association with, and endorsement of, Trump seemed like an odd pairing, considering Trump’s past anti-Muslim comments. Ghalib is a Muslim.
The mayor teamed up with Trump after bitterly complaining about President Joe Biden’s continued financial support of Israel while they were — and still are — bombing Gaza.
Trump has actually continued that same support, and, when pressed about it, Ghalib explained that his alignment with Trump has more to do with “family values.”
He stressed that, while he disagrees with Trump’s support of Israel, he has more in common with the Republican Party and its anti-LGBTQ positions.
Speaking of LGBTQ matters, a federal judge dealt a death blow to those seeking to have the pride flag displayed again on a city flagpole.
Federal judge David Lawson said the city was within its rights to ban the pride flag.
The mayor and council, who are all-male and all-Muslim, said they banned the flag in order for the city to remain “neutral” in matters that could be considered politically divisive or socially controversial.
Mayor Ghalib called the court ruling a “great victory” for the city.
“Your mayor and council were on the bright (sic) side of history,” Ghalib said on his Facebook page.
He also said that this court decision was a defeat of Hamtramck’s “deep state.”
Ghalib did not elaborate on who or what constituted the “deep state,” but he has often criticized former Mayor Karen Majewski and her supporters for, in his view, trying to undermine the city administration and his position as mayor.
Ghalib continued on Facebook: “And we will triumph in other cases against the lying, deception, and incendiary falsification from centers of influence, the deep city state, etc!”

He continued: “Trust your leadership and don’t be fooled by the fake media that works to discredit all accomplishments in our city.”

While Ghalib’s political rise and tenure are over in Hamtramck, there’s a good chance he will continue to make news in 2026.
Posted Jan. 16, 2025