Actually roads are paid for by use taxes (gas, registration, etc.), entirely, which means they pay for themselves. Surplus from those use taxes tend to be revenue sources for some states. Roads, essentially, pay for themselves. I will admit there are the usual boondogles (ie Big Dig). Same with the airline infrastructure. Rail, however, is a net money loser, and you would never be able to charge enough in fees to make it pay for itself. There isn't a single high-speed rail system in the world that doesn't charge a tax on something else (such as fuel for cars) to subsidize. Many studies show that the most economical/carbon friendly form of transportation is the bus. High-speed rail is nice for the convenience but it will never break even, $ wise, or carbon wise.

The US military did quite well at what it was supposed to do in Iraq. Occupation wasn't part of the job description. Afghanistan was best done by the CIA and by the time the DoD got there things were already set up for a "victory".