Politics. On Point.

The Art Of Communication “ Read My Pins: The Madeleine Albright Collection ” opened at the Smithsonian Castle on June 18 and it will be on view through Oct. 11, 2010. This exhibition features more than 200 pins, many of which Secretary Albright wore to communicate messages during her diplomatic tenure. Blue Bird Pin. Albright, explaining the story behind her Blue Bird pin said, “Until the twenty-fourth of February 1996, I wore the pin with the bird's head soaring upward. On the afternoon of that tragic day, Cuban fighter pilots shot down two unarmed civilian aircraft over international waters between Cuba and Florida. To illustrate my feelings, I wore the bird pin with its head pointing down, in mourning for the free spirited Cuban-American fliers.” During her service as ambassador to the United Nations, and then as U.S. Secretary of State, Albright came to understand how powerful a symbol an item of jewelry could be, and chose pins to reflect her diplomatic mission, reinfo...

A First Lady's Debut First Lady Michelle Obama's Inaugural gown is now on display at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History along side the gowns of former U.S. First Ladies. In a ceremony today in the Smithsonian's Flag Hall, Mrs. Obama said of the occasion, "I'm a little embarrassed by all the fuss being made over my dress." "Like many of you, I’m not used to people wanting to put things I’ve worn on display. When we look at the gown that Jackie Kennedy wore 50 years ago, or the one that Mary Todd Lincoln wore more than a hundred years before that, it really takes us beyond the history books and the photographs, and it helps us understand that history is really made by real live people", added the First Lady. The event featured the dress' designer, Vietnamese born, Jason Wu , along with the students from New York City's Huntington High School. We asked Wu what it feels like getting this much attention to his w...