The US economy is like that of Canada.
Neither can afford a substantial government yet both keep the pedal to the floor, aggravating an already fatal debt to cash flow ratio.
In Canada, starting with Martin, fiscal responsibilities were downloaded to the Provinces, who then downloaded most of them to the municipalities who then downloaded them to tax payers by increasing taxes on the final depository..Us.

The result is a severely diminished middle class .
It will get a lot worse.

With real wealth on a downward slide,with most future growth already borrowed to sustain Govts that we can no longer afford, we cannot but fall of a cliff .