Barack Obama: “I express my extraordinary admiration for the character and resolve of the Japanese people.”

It's a way to honor her trailblazing leadership, and inspire visitors to follow in her footsteps.

They're meant to remind us of who we can be, to remind us of what's possible, so we can forge ahead.

The success of this experiment was never a given.

At least one of our major parties has been captured by politics that is not that subtle about suggesting that ‘We the people’ means a certain kind of people.