Amer Ghalib, the mayor of Hamtramck, Mich., and President Donald Trump’s nominee to be U.S. ambassador to Kuwait, is expected to face a frosty reception when he appears before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee for his confirmation hearing on Thursday.

The hearing comes after months of private pushback from GOP senators to Ghalib’s nomination over his anti-Israel record, which includes him questioning reports of Hamas atrocities on Oct. 7, 2023, supporting the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement and for liking antisemitic comments on social media. 

Ghalib was given a date for his confirmation hearing in early October after months of delays. During that time, several committee Republicans unsuccessfully lobbied the White House to withdraw Ghalib from consideration for the Kuwait post, according to a senior GOP defense staffer familiar with the conversations.

Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), the top Democrat on the committee, said earlier this month that Ghalib’s nomination had been delayed. Ghalib acknowledged at the time that he was facing objections but said that Trump had called him to offer his continued support for his nomination, and the hearing was scheduled shortly after.

With the hearing moving ahead, senators on both sides of the aisle have prepared questions for Ghalib about his history of incendiary public statements criticizing Israel and appearing to justify Hamas’ attacks on the Jewish state and deny that sexual violence took place, as well as his record as mayor of Hamtramck. 

Trump tapped Ghalib for the ambassador role in early March, after the Democratic mayor endorsed Trump in the 2024 election and helped him rally support in Michigan’s Arab and Muslim American communities. The president stood by Ghalib despite his nomination stalling over GOP opposition and calls from the Anti-Defamation League, American Jewish Committee, Democratic Majority for Israel and others to withdraw him from consideration.

“He’s done a great job as mayor, and he’s done a great job with his support of us,” Trump said of Ghalib at a White House dinner later that month. “You’ll be the next ambassador to Kuwait. You’re going to have a great time with Kuwait, wonderful people, and it’s a great place, so congratulations.”

Ghalib, who was born in Yemen, made history in 2021 when he was elected as Hamtramck’s first Arab and Muslim mayor. As mayor, Ghalib, a Democrat, led Hamtramck to pass a measure to boycott and divest from Israel. He also has a history of expressing support for antisemitic social media posts.