By Rick Moran

With his popularity in free fall, President Obama's likeness is also taking a hit.

Washington Post:

"Souvenir vendors in Washington say once-thriving sales of the garish merchandise fawning over the president are nowhere near what they were. Sales peaked at the height of Obamamania, between the election and the inauguration, but vendors said that Obama paraphernalia still moved from their shelves through much of 2009.

Freddy Vinoya, of Souvenir World in the District, said he has seen sales, and shoppers' interest, taper off since October, when the store opened.

In Union Station, the souvenir shop once dubbed the Obama Store because of its mostly Obama-related selection (save for the Michael Jackson memorabilia of the same vein that popped up after his death) has closed. A jewelry-repair shop stands in its place near the food court.

"That moment in history is gone," said Molly Andolina, a professor of political science at DePaul University, in the president's adopted home town of Chicago. "You're going to only see the enthusiasts" continue to buy, she said."

Precious few of those left at this point.

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It's such a pathetic, sad story. If I wasn't such a harsh, cold-hearted bastard, I might shed a tear. Yeah, that's it. I really might. Heh.

Want to bet on whether the government buys up all the leftover chia heads for the department of education school lunch program and declares chia grass is a nutritious vegetable?

Did he get his full 15 minutes or was it only 12? Whatever, long enough.