I went out with some old friends and we were having fun. A couple of them were very intoxicated. When I went to leave, I refused to let them drive. So when I got pulled over, I was the driver.

My father always said, "You don't know who you are until you know where you came from." That's one thing I always remembered. The other thing that my family always taught me was respect and reputation. You always respect yourself.

My family is just an amazing melting pot of wonderful religions and faiths.

America is the land of opportunity, and people can live in America and be who they want to be. Don't deny your faith. Don't deny your ethnicity. Don't stereotype Muslim women, because as you can see with me, or in Lebanon, for example, beauty is appreciated.

My mom was diagnosed with breast cancer when I was 13 and it was something we weren't really aware of as a family.

I believe that birth control is just like every other medication even though it's a controlled substance.

I'm not a party animal; I took my job as Miss USA very seriously Sometimes, of course, I want to let it all go. Even though I'm a beauty queen, you're also an unofficial ambassador, and there's a lot of pressure.