Cleaning up after the inauguration

Large amounts of trash are left behind on the National Mall at the conclusion of the swearing-in ceremony for President Obama.  (Jay Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

Audience members, some wearing souvenirs, leave the National Mall after the Inauguration Day ceremonies.  (Jay Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

Spectators sit in trash and debris along the National Mall after the inauguration of Barack Obama as the 44th president.  (Robert Nickelsberg / Getty Images)

Piles of U.S. flags are left on the National Mall at the conclusion of the swearing-in ceremony for President Obama.  (Jay Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

Trash and those trying to wait out the massive departing crowds are seen along the National Mall at the conclusion of the inauguration ceremonies.  (Jay Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

Steven Jacob, 8, of Westminster, Md., plays with an Obama flag among the trash left around the Capitol after the inauguration ceremonies for President Obama.  (Jacquelyn Martin / Associated Press)

A piece of paper displaying a portrait of President Obama is discarded in the dirt on the National Mall following the swearing-in ceremony.  (Jay Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)