Maryland is one of the smallest states in terms of area, as well as one of the most densely populated states of the United States. Maryland has the highest median household income, making it the wealthiest state in the nation...
As defined by the United States Census Bureau,[1] the Southern region of the United States includes sixteen states. As of 2010, an estimated 114,555,744 people, or thirty-seven percent of all U.S. residents, lived in the South, the nation’s most populous region.[20] The Census Bureau defined three smaller divisions:
The South Atlantic States: Florida, Georgia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, and Delaware
The East South Central States: Alabama, Kentucky, Mississippi and Tennessee
The West South Central States: Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Texas.
Source: Wikipedia
Amazingly, all the states you mentioned are among the highest federal welfare states. Hecky Durn. Ain’t that sump’tin.