Doug Bandow from the Cato Institute says We Are a Bankrupt Empire!

The United States government is effectively bankrupt, and Washington can no longer afford to micromanage the world. In real terms, Washington spends more on "defense" today than we did during the Cold War, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War, in which I served as Advisory Team Leader. Max Boot of the Council of Foreign Relations worries that our increased financial obligations resulting from health-care obligations threaten and a myriad of other outlays are threatening America's "global standing". He asks : "Who will police the sea lanes, stop the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, combat terrorism, respond to genocide and other unconscionable human rights violations, and deter rogue states from aggression?" The United States should not attempt to do everything even if it could afford to do so. But it can't! When it comes to the federal Treasury, there's nothing there. If Uncle Sam were a real person, he would have to declare bankruptcy. The current national debt is $12.7 trillion. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that current policy requires spending of up to $10 trillion in deficits over the coming decade, but more spending - a lot more spending - is on the way!