[hodgehog11]

It depends. The military is not particularly efficient, but it's not clear whether that is desirable. The tax system is not efficient, but that is by design of the industry. Many other organizations are surprisingly efficient actually, hence why some of DOGE's scalpel treatment was so harmful.

The government is an enormous ship and you want enough checks and balances to ensure it cannot suddenly turn on a dime without a huge emergency.

As for the debt, that mostly comes down to:

1) Military spending to enforce US domination across the globe.

2) Social security for the Boomers (many countries are being hit by this).

3) Unsustainably low tax rates given the requirements of government. In particular, the presence of numerous tax loopholes for the ultra-wealthy.

4) The insanity of the healthcare industry in the US.