And on the other end of the spectrum, you have the blue state utopias of Detroit, Oakland, Buffalo, the Inland Empire and Chicago, with Texas being a notable red state contradiction to your premise. You also have Georgia and the Carolinas increasingly emerging as technology and manufacturing centers of economic activity.
There is nothing in America that even comes close to eupopean democratic socialism. Europe benefits from American GDP investments in military and defense, which frees up a lot of capital. Their societies are also less diverse and more culturally homogenous, which inherently removes most of the hurdles present in US politics. Most also have mandatory government service, which I am a proponent of. Guess which states in the US contribute the least to our volunteer military?
Also, which Europe are you referring to? Germany, the Nordics and Switzerland fit your narrative. Portugal, Spain, Italy and Greece certainly do not. Interestingly enough, Spain, Italy and Greece beat Germany on life expectancy, yet I dob't think we want to emulate their governments.