The Statue of Liberty is at the center of a national debate on immigration after a top Trump administration official offered the president's own interpretation of the famous inscription that has welcomed immigrants to the United States for more than a century.
The acting director of Citizenship and Immigration Services, Ken Cuccinelli, who is an immigration hardliner, said Tuesday that the poem by Emma Lazarus referred to "people coming from Europe" and that America is looking to receive migrants "who can stand on their own two feet."
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FILE - In this June 2, 2009, file photo, the Statue of Liberty stands in New York harbor. (AP PhotoRichard Drew, File)
FILE - In this Nov. 14, 1995, file photo, Sonja Kuhnelt of Germany peers out a ferry window at the Statue of Liberty as a small group of visitors wait on the dock to board the vessel. (AP PhotoAdam Nadel, File)
FILE - In this July 29, 2010, file photo, with the Statue of Liberty behind them, a coalition of immigrant groups and their supporters march across the Brooklyn Bridge in New York. (AP PhotoSeth Wenig, File)
FILE - In this Oct. 13, 2013, file photo, the Statue of Liberty looms over a visitor as he uses binoculars to look out onto New York Harbor in New York. (AP PhotoJohn Minchillo, File)
FILE - In this June 29, 1954, file photo, the Statue of Liberty stands in New York Harbor as the ocean liner Queen Mary goes past as seen from a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter. (AP PhotoFile)
FILE - In this undated file photo, a group of immigrants who arrived at Ellis Island in New York wait in line to begin immigration proceedings. Ellis Island, the former immigration inspection station, is adjacent to the Statue of Liberty. (AP PhotoFile)
FILE - In this Oct. 28, 1956, file photo, Mr. and Mrs. Paul Roerich from Bavaria, Germany, look out from the stern of the USNS General Langfitt anchored in New York Harbor carrying over a 1,000 refugees from Europe. In the background is the Statue of Liberty. The couple planned to settle in Ohio. (AP PhotoFile)
FILE - This Oct. 7, 2014, file photo, shows the Statue of Liberty during a visit by President Barack Obama, in New York. (AP PhotoEvan Vucci, File)
FILE - In this Dec. 17, 1985, file photo, workers remove scaffolding from the Statue of Liberty, in New York. (AP PhotoMario Cabrera, File)
FILE - In this July 31, 2015, file photo, a blue moon rises behind the torch of the Statue of Liberty seen from Liberty State Park in Jersey City, N.J. A blue moon happens when the moon rises in its full stage twice during the same month. (AP PhotoJulio Cortez, File)
Lazarus' poem, written in 1883 to raise money to construct the Statue of Liberty's pedestal, was cast in bronze beneath the monument in 1903. The statue and the poem's words have served as a beacon to millions of immigrants as they first entered the nation in New York Harbor. It reads: "Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore."
FILE - In this June 2, 2009, file photo, the Statue of Liberty stands in New York harbor. (AP PhotoRichard Drew, File)
Cuccinelli's comments came as Democrats and immigrant-rights groups blasted a new Trump administration policy that could deny green cards to migrants who seek public assistance, saying the changes would scare immigrants away from asking for needed help.
President Donald Trump has spoken disparagingly about immigration from majority black and Hispanic countries, including calling Mexican immigrants rapists and criminals when he launched his 2016 campaign. Last year, he privately referred to Central American and African nations as "shithole" countries and suggested the U.S. take in more immigrants from European countries such as predominantly white Norway.
FILE - In this Nov. 14, 1995, file photo, Sonja Kuhnelt of Germany peers out a ferry window at the Statue of Liberty as a small group of visitors wait on the dock to board the vessel. (AP PhotoAdam Nadel, File)
FILE - In this July 29, 2010, file photo, with the Statue of Liberty behind them, a coalition of immigrant groups and their supporters march across the Brooklyn Bridge in New York. (AP PhotoSeth Wenig, File)
FILE - In this Oct. 13, 2013, file photo, the Statue of Liberty looms over a visitor as he uses binoculars to look out onto New York Harbor in New York. (AP PhotoJohn Minchillo, File)
FILE - In this June 29, 1954, file photo, the Statue of Liberty stands in New York Harbor as the ocean liner Queen Mary goes past as seen from a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter. (AP PhotoFile)
FILE - In this undated file photo, a group of immigrants who arrived at Ellis Island in New York wait in line to begin immigration proceedings. Ellis Island, the former immigration inspection station, is adjacent to the Statue of Liberty. (AP PhotoFile)
FILE - In this Oct. 28, 1956, file photo, Mr. and Mrs. Paul Roerich from Bavaria, Germany, look out from the stern of the USNS General Langfitt anchored in New York Harbor carrying over a 1,000 refugees from Europe. In the background is the Statue of Liberty. The couple planned to settle in Ohio. (AP PhotoFile)
FILE - This Oct. 7, 2014, file photo, shows the Statue of Liberty during a visit by President Barack Obama, in New York. (AP PhotoEvan Vucci, File)
FILE - In this Dec. 17, 1985, file photo, workers remove scaffolding from the Statue of Liberty, in New York. (AP PhotoMario Cabrera, File)
FILE - In this July 31, 2015, file photo, a blue moon rises behind the torch of the Statue of Liberty seen from Liberty State Park in Jersey City, N.J. A blue moon happens when the moon rises in its full stage twice during the same month. (AP PhotoJulio Cortez, File)
U.S. President Donald Trump said that he has demanded about seven countries send warships to keep the Strait of Hormuz open, as Iranian strikes continued to rain down on Gulf countries early Monday.
Dubai International Airport — the world's busiest — suspended operations after a drone struck a fuel tank, starting a fire. Authorities said it was quickly contained and no injuries were reported.
Tehran has accused the United States of using “ports, docks and hideouts” in the United Arab Emirates to launch strikes on Kharg Island, home to the main terminal handling Iran’s oil exports, without providing evidence, as oil prices soared.
Trump said the U.S. is negotiating with countries heavily reliant on Middle East crude to join a coalition to police the waterway where about one-fifth the world’s traded oil normally flows, but declined to name them.
Meanwhile, Israeli strikes have deepened Lebanon's humanitarian crisis, with more than 850 people killed and over 850,000 displaced.
Here is the latest:
Saudi Arabia says it intercepted three drones Monday morning over the capital Riyadh and the nation’s oil-rich western region.
The Saudi Defense Ministry says no casualties or damage were reported.
The ministry reports more than 60 drones attacked the Gulf country within a few hours.
United Arab Emirates officials say Dubai International Airport has gradually resumed some flights at hours after a drone strike.
Dubai Civil Aviation Authority announced flights are operating to selected destinations, according to the Dubai Media Office.
Emirates airline says limited operations have resumed at the airport.
A drone struck a fuel tank at the airport early Monday, causing a fire and forcing the temporary suspension of flights.
Brent crude oil is trading near the $105 per barrel level on Monday.
A barrel of Brent, the international standard, was up 1.6% at $104.73, dipping slightly after opening above $106 per barrel. It’s up more than 40% since the war began.
Share prices in Asia were mixed and U.S. futures advanced.
Hours after a drone strike sparked a fire at Dubai’s main airport, Emirates says in its latest update that all of its flights there “remain suspended until further notice.”
The airline says it is working with authorities to restart operations when possible. It urged passengers not to travel to the airport.
Dubai International Airport is the world’s busiest airport for international travel and a key hub for many routes linking the East and West.
The United Arab Emirates’ Defense Ministry said forces were intercepting Iranian missiles and drones Monday morning.
Earlier, a drone hit a fuel tank at the Dubai International Airport.
Trump is suggesting he may delay his much-anticipated visit to China at the end of the month as he seeks to ramp up the pressure on Beijing to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz and calm oil prices.
In an interview Sunday with the Financial Times, Trump said China’s reliance on oil from the Middle East means it ought to help with a new coalition he is trying to put together to get oil tanker traffic moving through the strait after Iran’s threats have throttled global flows of oil.
Trump said “we’d like to know” before the trip whether Beijing will help.
“We may delay,” Trump said in the interview.
Trump’s new comments came as U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent was meeting with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng on Monday in Paris for a new round of trade talks that were meant to pave the way for Trump’s Beijing trip.
Mohammed bin Salman and Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan discussed the latest regional developments in a phone call, Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement early Monday.
The two leaders said the continued “Iranian attacks against Gulf Cooperation Council countries represent a dangerous escalation that threatens regional security and stability,” adding that GCC states will continue efforts to defend their countries
Emirati authorities have closed the main road and tunnel leading to Dubai International Airport.
Dubai Police urged drivers to use alternative roads.
Authorities said earlier a drone hit a fuel tank at the airport, causing fire with no casualties.
Saudi Arabia’s Defense Ministry said early Monday it downed an additional large barrage of 35 drones in the country’s eastern region, one of the kingdom’s least dense, close to Iran and home to major oil installations.
This brings the total number of drones intercepted to at least 60 in the last few hours.
The ministry did not immediately report casualties or damage.
The Australian government says a warship won’t be sent to the Middle East to keep the Strait of Hormuz open to international shipping.
U.S. President Donald Trump said that he has demanded about seven countries send warships to keep the Strait of Hormuz open, as Iranian strikes continued to rain down on Gulf countries.
Australia’s Transport Minister Catherine King told Australian Broadcasting Corp. on Monday she was not aware of Australia receiving such a request.
“We won’t be sending a ship to the Strait of Hormuz. We know how incredibly important that is, but that’s not something that we’ve been asked or that we’re contributing to,” King said.
Australia said last week it was providing the UAE with an air force surveillance jet and air-to-air missiles to defend against Iranian attacks.
But a government statement said Australia was “not taking offensive action against Iran.”
FlyDubai planeS is parked at Dubai International Airport as smoke rises in the background after a drone struck a fuel tank early morning, forcing the temporary suspension of flights, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Monday, March 16, 2026. (AP Photo)
A member of the armed wing of the Kurdish-Iranian opposition group Organization of Iranian Kurdistan Struggle, known as Khabat, stands in front of a shrapnel pockmarked wall that allegedly was damaged in strike by Iranian-backed militias in Iraq last week at a military base on the outskirts of Irbil, Iraq, Monday, March 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)
Nofar Eliash holds her dog as she takes shelter with others while air raid sirens warn of incoming Iranian and Hezbollah missile strikes in Kiryat Shmona, northern Israel, Monday, March 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)
A view of Kiryat Shmona, northern Israel, and Lebanon border on the right,, Monday, March 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)
Fire and plumes of smoke rise after a drone struck a fuel tank forcing the temporary suspension of flights. near Dubai International Airport, in United Arab Emirates, early Monday, March 16, 2026. (AP Photo)
Israeli security forces inspect damage at the site of an Iranian missile strike in Holon, central Israel, Sunday, March 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
A bulldozer clears debris from the rubble of buildings destroyed in an Israeli airstrike in Dahiyeh, Beirut's southern suburbs, Lebanon, Sunday, March 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)
Debris litters the street as smoke rises from buildings damaged in an Israeli airstrike in Dahiyeh, Beirut's southern suburbs, Lebanon, Sunday, March 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)
A woman displays a poster of the Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei as she waves her country's flag during a campaign in support of the government at the Enqelab-e-Eslami, or Islamic Revolution, square in downtown Tehran, Iran, Saturday, March 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
A cargo ship sails in the Arabian Gulf towards Strait of Hormuz in United Arab Emirates, Sunday, March 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
