The Michigan Arab-American mayor who made headlines for endorsing former President Trump says the Biden-Harris administration’s handling of the Middle East is one of the “most important determining factors” of his decision.
Mayor Amer Ghalib, the Democrat leader of Hamtramck – a city outside of Detroit – said on “Sunday Morning Futures” that his choice to back Trump “was like sailing against the waves” and has brought him some pushback.
“It was a combination of both disappointment and hope – disappointment [with] the current administration on how they handled the situation in the Middle East, because that is one of the most important, determining factors of our decision, who to vote for as Arab-Americans this time,” Ghalib said when asked to explain his endorsement.
Ghalib added there is “a hope that some change will bring peace to the Middle East and we found President Trump is so determined about that.”
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“The priority for us at this time is accomplishing a cease-fire and bringing peace to the Middle East. Kamala Harris has been in the office for the past three years and during the whole year of war in the Middle East, I supported the Uncommitted movement in Michigan to send a strong message to the current administration, to take our concerns into consideration but nothing was happening,” he continued. “In fact, they completely neglected us and negligence become the norm.”
“We are hoping that President Trump will come and do something different to bring peace – that is all we want,” Ghalib continued.
The mayor also said Trump “is doing everything possible to show respect to this community,” including visiting his city following his endorsement.
“The other side decided to neglect us and I think they should be punished for what they have been doing,” he added.
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Ghalib, who became Hamtramck’s first Muslim mayor after being elected in 2021, was born in Yemen and immigrated to the U.S. as a teenager in 1997, according to a profile of the mayor posted by Henry Ford College.
Ghalib spent most of his career as a medical professional in Hamtramck, an enclave of Detroit with about 28,000 residents. The town was known as a mostly Polish settlement until recent decades, with a large influx of Middle Eastern immigrants eventually making it the nation’s first Muslim-majority city.
He made history when he defeated former Hamtramck Mayor Karen Majewski, breaking an over 100-year streak of the city being represented by a Polish-American mayor. The city also became the first in the nation with an all-Muslim elected leadership that same year, with Hamtramck’s six city council seats being won by Muslim candidates.
Fox News’ Michael Lee contributed to this report.
