RICH MARYLAND – AT 8:09 A.M. ET:  Census data shows that Maryland has replaced Connecticut as the nation's wealthiest state.  

Why should we be surprised?  An inordinate number of federal employees live in Maryland, and some work there in federal facilities just outside Washington, D.C.  Federal employees now earn considerably more than their counterparts in the private sector, and don't get laid off routinely.  Thus, Maryland has a disproportionate number of highly paid, stable workers.  From the Baltimore Sun, which has laid off plenty of employees in recent years:

Maryland's median household income was nearly $70,000, ahead of Connecticut and New Jersey, and far above the nationwide median of about $51,400.

But notice this, about Baltimore:

Fewer than 10 percent of city households fit the "traditional" mold of a married couple with children. Both the average household size and family size in the city have increased since 2000.

And this:

...more residents in some suburbs were living in poverty than in 2000.

The report is a combination of success and disaster, but the Sun doesn't even mention the role that the federal government plays in propping up the Maryland numbers.  I guess it's politically incorrect to point it out.

December 15, 2010