Citizen: Our government has a large budget surplus, which our leaders wish to use to pay down the national debt  This makes no sense  Because of underfunding, our military is inadequate, the infrastructures of our cities are decaying, and our highways are in disrepair  If homeowners used all their money to pay off their mortgages early, while refusing to pay for upkeep of their homes, this would not make them better off financially
The same goes for the country as a whole
Because of underfunding, the government does not maintain adequate standards in the services it provides.