Cashing In on Obama—in Pictures

By Paul Bedard, Washington Whispers

There seems to be no end to how Washington is trying to cash in on the inauguration of the new president, Barack Obama. At just two stops this week—a Wal-Mart in Leesburg, Va., and Washington's Union Station—we found ample evidence of the commercialization of the new president. But we start off with the first picture, the collection of trading cards just put out by Topps. The trading card company tells us it is printing 90 different cards of the new first family and administration. Next are two shots from the Wal-Mart in Leesburg. The following four are of stands inside Union Station, just three blocks from the platform where Obama will be sworn in as president. They are selling buttons, shirts, and cozy nylon caps. And the final touch: Ikea has a display inside Union Station of how it would outfit the Oval Office.