entitlements, servicing debt, and the defense budget

Definitely depends on how you count.

Discretionary Defense spending totals over $800B in 2023, but doesn't include a number of additional costs. Total outlays go to over $1T when you add up what Congress authorized plus what Biden requested for weapons R&D, international aid (notably to Ukraine and Israel as well as Pacific Rim territories), and upgrades to our nuclear arsenal by way of the Department of Energy.

That puts the defense budget above Medicare, but below Social Security. It also dwarfs the $650B we're spending on outstanding interest (remarkably low considering the gross debt). But we've seen people stop talking about SS and Medicare as distinct entities, instead mashing them together to make the total look bigger. I've also seen folks carving the Tricare/VA costs off the overall Pentagon budget and start talking about it like another entitlement. So... shrug

You get roads, public schools, parks, and libraries.

But I pay for all of that with property, gas, and sales taxes. None of it is free.