• December 05, 2005
• Vol. 64
• No. 23

Mr. & Mrs. Smith Go to Washington

Lobbying Lovebirds Brad and Angelina Hit Capitol Hill (with a Museum Stop for Maddox)

When Angelina Jolie arrived in Washington, D.C., Nov. 17, she expected to encounter people pushing their own agendas. She just didn't think 10-month-old daughter Zahara would be one of them. "I was trying to go over my speech today, and Zahara was all over me," she said. Not that she needed much rehearsal time: Jolie charmed politicians at a press conference celebrating the signing of the Assistance for Orphans and Oilier Vulnerable Children in Developing Countries Act of 2005 (which mandates that 10 percent of $3.4 billion in U.S. aid to fight the global AIDS crisis goes to children). "Her face says it all to me. It makes it very, very personal," says Jolie of Zahara, who was orphaned by AIDS and helped prompt her two-day D.C. lobbying visit with beau Brad Pitt. "With my kids, this is what I'm going to work for."

Meanwhile, Pitt was doing some politicking himself. As an ambassador of advocacy group DATA (Debt, AIDS, Trade, Africa), he spent two days meeting with officials, including Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), to "gain a better understanding of the trade issues in Africa, AIDS and extreme poverty," says a DATA rep. The trip wasn't all work: the couple enjoyed a romantic dinner at Georgetown's Cafe Milano and visited a few homes up for sale—but not to buy. Why? Architecture buff Pitt "wanted to look at buildings around Washington," says a pal. Then again, D.C. always has roomful' another political power couple.