[yardstick]

1.8T with a population of 329.5m is about $5,462 per person in the US. Even if you halve the number of people, ~$11k per person seems like a low number - I’m probably not understanding the numbers correctly?

You do need some cash for a rainy day, emergency expenses, unexpected travel etc.

[quasifinite]

Yes, you ought to be able to afford to cover small emergencies. But unfortunately it seems that many Americans cannot. For instance, "Survey finds more than half of Americans can’t afford a $1,000 emergency", https://thehill.com/changing-america/respect/poverty/590453-...