Tax is for a state to operate and distribute demographically and maintenance of those amounts are subjected to the state officials and politicians to spend in their favourite areas and public demands they see in the country.
If politicians tread corrupted way,the whole nation has to suffer.
US have their own base of foreign policy and to get the right intention done, they put biggest amount of national budget into defence spending. State policy is what involved here.
Although decentralized mind wouldnt support taxation and cutting away of money, but in state structure, power when it is centralized to some extent - no way out to get with it unless a combined change is done in such cases.