On the contrary, I'd expect it to worsen. Engineers and technophiles are some of the most outspoken groups opposed to the surveillance state and other abuses of power, especially technological ones. They're also the groups most likely to invent technological workarounds to abuses of power.
> How would they continue to pay for it?
The same way it's being paid for now: massive debt.
Yes, but it doesn't seem to me like they have any impact whatsoever. Maybe I'm incorrect, though.
> The same way it's being paid for now: massive debt.
If the US economy were to crash (which it would if 50% of STEM workers leave, I think), I'm not sure if US debt would be worth anything.
More generally speaking, though, the US military and intelligence system is very highly dependent on highly skilled STEM workers. I suspect that there is already a labor shortage affecting them, and I suspect that, via their shenanigans, they are running a serious risk of seriously crippling their capabilities in the upcoming decades.
Among my colleagues in grad school, I was one of minority that was seriously willing to consider work in the military sector as a career, and now even I'm not.
And while the US could implement many aspects of fascism (particularly government control of industry that is nomially help privately, which is alredy the case for telecom), a war for global domination is not likely one of them.
May not be a terrible strategy going forward if the US starts looking like an end-stage Weimer Republic, especially since people will have to flee anyway.