The New Fat CatsThe indefensible pensions of public-sector employees.
BY Fred Barnes
May 3, 2010, Vol. 15, No. 31

John Edwards was right. There are two Americas, just not his two (the rich and powerful versus everyone else).

The real divide today is, on one side, the 20 million people who work for state and local governments and the additional 3 million who’ve retired with fat pensions. On the other, the rest of us, roughly 280 million Americans. In short, there’s a gulf between the bureaucrats and the people.

Governor Chris Christie of New Jersey puts his fight with teachers and their union in roughly those terms. [u][b]He says there are “two classes of citizens in New Jersey: those who enjoy rich public benefits and those who pay for them.â€