This could be the second nominee in a month to fall victim to Republican opposition amid past comments perceived to be antisemitic.
At least three Republicans on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee will oppose President Donald Trump’s pick for ambassador to Kuwait, Amer Ghalib, likely derailing his confirmation for the position.
It would be the second time this month that a Trump nominee has been tanked by members of the president’s own party over concerns about a history of allegedly antisemitic remarks.
Ghalib, the mayor of Hamtramck, Mich., made headlines in 2024 for endorsing Trump in his capacity as the mayor of the only U.S. city run entirely by Muslims. He was excoriated by Republicans as well as Democrats during his confirmation hearing last Thursday, where he had to answer for past comments suggesting Israel deserved to be attacked by Hamas and for allegedly complimenting members of the Muslim Brotherhood and the late dictator of Iraq, Saddam Hussein.
“I was a ‘no’ even before the hearing,” Sen. John Curtis (R-Utah) said in an interview Monday.
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) made clear during the hearing that he would vote against Ghalib’s nomination. Sen. John Cornyn, another Texas Republican, said in a Monday interview he too would give a thumbs down to Trump’s pick.
Assuming all Democrats vote “no,” Ghalib can afford to lose only three Republicans on the Senate floor before Vice President JD Vance is brought in to break a tie. As it currently stands, Ghalib would not even have GOP support to advance out of Senate Foreign Relations, where only two Republicans can oppose a nominee on an otherwise party-line vote.
A fourth GOP opponent could be incoming. Sen. Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.), who also harshly questioned Ghalib on his views on Israel at the recent hearing, was noncommittal when asked how he would vote on the nominee.
“We’ll have some conversations with Senator [Jim] Risch on that one,” Ricketts said, referring to the Senate Foreign Relations chair.
Last week, the Trump administration withdrew its nominee to lead the Office of Special Counsel, Paul Ingrassia, after POLITICO reported on texts that showed him making racist and antisemitic remarks to fellow Republicans.
A lawyer for Ingrassia did not confirm the authenticity of the texts and said they “could be manipulated or are being provided with material context omitted.”
Regarding Ghalib’s prospects, the White House and the State Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
A spokesperson for Risch also did not immediately respond to questions about whether the Idaho Republican would support Ghalib and if the nominee would appear on the agenda for an upcoming markup.
Giselle Ruhiyyih Ewing contributed to this report.