Like Tolken’s mythical city of Mordor, the District of Columbia is rapidly drawing the wealth of the nation to itself. Nine of the 20 richest counties in the U.S. are D.C. suburbs where America’s millionaire government workers reside in gilded mansions.
Even as taxation and regulation drive more Americans into homelessness, the median household income in Loudoun County, Va., where many federal employees reside, was $140,382 as of 2018. Indeed, with the exception of the New York City and San Francisco areas, the wealthiest counties are all government capitols or suburbs of capitols. Los Alamos County, New Mexico—where many federal government scientists and defense industry parasites dwell—ranked #4.
