I would say democracy is less of a problem, the problem is lack of accountability at least on constitutional level. One of the biggest thing I’d add to the constitution is a rule that mandates for every dollar we spent on the military, another dollar must be spent on education.
Obviously there would be exceptions, but in general for the last few decades, we have been mainly engaging conflicts outside of the US. So until it is in our home territory, it a good idea to put a limit on the military and divert fund to education. Don’t Let the Perfect Be the Enemy of the Good