I think that government, as the executive and regulatory function of society is somewhat analogous to the central nervous system, while banking and money are analogous to the circulation system and blood.

The situation with the United States is that its entire history is one of growth and expansion and the political culture has managed to ride this wave. So that democracy can sustain the impression of leadership, even though it is constantly changing leaders and directions. Which created a situation where the banking establishment is more powerful and influential than the political leadership.

The problem this creates is it is somewhat like a large hungry animal, that it's driven by its desire to grow and feed, without a great deal of long term perspective and thought.

The countries of the Old World have cultures that are much older, with histories of both success and failure to inform their actions. So they are more cautious and their adversaries are much closer.

Consider that our financial markets could not function without government debt soaking up much of the investment money. This started with the New Deal, so not only was Roosevelt putting unemployed labor back to work, but unemployed capital as well. Then WW2 shifted this to the military. So public debt, much of it flowing to the military, has been a core aspect of our public policy.

After the Cold War was over, attention shifted to Islamic terrorists, with many questions unanswered about 9/11. Then when that couldn't attract attention and respect, Donald Trump became an opportunity to switch attention back to the Russians.

They are certainly no angels, but blaming Trump on them was like blaming the neighbor that you can't pay your mortgage, because their dog shits on your lawn. Totally delusional distraction from a corrupt establishment.

Debt doesn't matter, until it does. As anyone with a credit card eventually finds out.

So I suspect this current mess is more about the death throes of history's largest debt bubble.