The thing about defining "squandered" is that it's hard! Is the alternative how you personally would spend that money? Is it how the individuals paying taxes w

The thing about defining "squandered" is that it's hard! Is the alternative how you personally would spend that money? Is it how the individuals paying taxes would spend it? How about the individuals holding wealth, assuming it's debt spending that's paid for via inflation? I like to compare to how the broader private market would have spent the same amounts toward the same goals. A lot of that money would be squandered too - many companies fail. I think if that's an issue you really care about, ask yourself how you measure the problem!