Meet the 77,000

By the Left Coast Rebel

77,000 Federal employees that make more than the governors of their respective states, that is.

All aboard the Gravy Train:

More than 77,000 federal government employees throughout the country -- including computer operators, more than 5,000 air traffic controllers, 22 librarians and one interior designer -- earned more than the governors of the states in which they work.

The findings, from a Congressional Research Service report requested by Sen. Tom Coburn, Oklahoma Republican, were released at a time when public workers' salaries and benefits are under scrutiny across the country as governments try to streamline.

CRS reviewed 2009 salary figures, the most recent available, and found 77,057 employees who earned more in annual pay than their respective governors. Of those workers, 18,351 were doctors -- the highest percentage. The second-highest total was for 5,170 air traffic controllers -- likely both front-line controllers and their supervisors.

In Maryland, 7,283 federal employees -- about 7 percent of all full-time federal employees in the state -- earned more than Gov. Martin O'Malley's $150,000 salary. Maryland was topped by Colorado, which in 2009 had 10,875 employees who made more than the $90,000 salary of the governor, Bill Ritter.

When in the hell did so-called "public service" (a flagrant misnomer in itself) end up being a 1st-class ticket on the gravy train? It won't be pretty when a majority of Americans wake up and figure out what our own "benevolent" government -- in cahoots with public sector unions -- has done to fleece our nation.

Image via Freaking News.

Via Memeorandum, cross posted to LCR.