By Dan Walters
dwalters@sacbee.com
12/14/2014 12:01 AM

California’s perpetual political debate over public employee pensions usually focuses on the benefits themselves – whether they are fair compensation for those doing the public’s work or, conversely, too generous.

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Detainees walk down a hallway at an immigrant detention facility in Adelanto. The Adelanto City Council approved an agreement to build a new 3,264-bed jail on the edge of town. (Cheryl A. Guerrero / Los Angeles Times)

By Kate Linthicum
December 13, 2014

The cash-strapped city of Adelanto, already home to three detention facilities, has approved a plan to build another.

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The U.S. Capitol Building is reflected in the Senate reflecting pool while undergoing repairs in Washington on Wednesday, Nov. 5, 2014. (Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg)

By Dan Balz
December 13, 2014 at 2:06 PM

The November elections brought significant changes to Washington and to many states. What they did not produce was any greater sense of optimism on the part of the public about the state of American politics. If anything, they produced the opposite.

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