What if the 2008 financial crisis did not stabilize? The first attempt at a bailout was denied in Congress, while the second one happened too late. Credit froze more severely than in reality. Several banks went under one after another. State pension funds were destroyed. There was a greater number of foreclosures than can be handled in court. Unemployment became a long-term political crisis by 2009.
Between 2009 and 2011, the country split. Some states stopped following federal orders. Governors relied on their National Guard troops for protecting food stocks, harbors, fuel supplies, and infrastructure. Local police forces were politicized. Counties in rural areas established their own armed defense groups. Multinational companies employed private military contractors to secure their supply lines. Militia groups became regional powers in the span of just a few years.
The definitive split took place in 2012. An insurgent group called the Army of the Covenant started attacking the government. This terrorist organization embraced an extremist evangelical ideology. Several military units joined them, refusing further orders, while others chose defection. Nuclear strikes hit Washington, D.C. and the command structure of the U.S. army was disrupted.
In the following decade, North America went through many stages of regional consolidation, border wars, emergency governments, and failed reunification attempts.