Inauguration Spending

There having been cry and hue over the estimated $40M spent for George Bush's second inauguration, it seems fair to question why an estimated $150M will be spent for the Barack Obama swearing-in festivities.

I understand the uniqueness of this event. Obama is our first minority President and the numbers of people attending are expected to shatter records. Still, security money aside, it's a heaping amount of cash. Fortunately, most of it is paid for through individual and corporate gifts.