Recent data from the U.S. Census Bureau about median household incomes explains why there is such a disconnect between the folks in Washington, D.C. and the rest of us.

When the word "median" is used, it means there are an equal number of people on either side of a specific point. In the case of the nation's capitol, the median income is $86,680.

According to the census folks, Washington, D.C. has the highest median income of any city in the nation. Cab drivers, wait staff, government employees, lobbyists, and since he lives in the city, the President, are included.

We talk about how hard it is for rich individuals like Bill Gates, Donald Trump, Warren Buffet, and South Dakota's Denny Sanford, to relate to those of us on the opposite end of the wage scale. Now you can add to the discussion this reality, as a group, the folks in Washington writing laws and rules, processing paperwork, lobbying our elected representatives, and each other, make more money than people in Chicago, Minneapolis, San Francisco, and any other city in the nation.

If it sometimes feels as if the collective voice in Washington is saying to us, "Let them eat cake,"  it may be because they have no idea what it is like to live in a "poorer" city.

The data from the census bureau surprised me. I thought the folks living in Washington would be somewhere in the middle of the "median household income" scale of U.S. cities.

The fact they are at the top, makes our angst about the government and its ability to fix problems affecting us, very real.