Doesn't the US already have the world biggest prison system and the most people in jail/prison. I think the whole concept of it being a deterrent has been debunked.
Sure US has an overly large prison population but no other developed country is as diverse, it also doesn't have a wide social safety net that works around the problem at the cost of blocking development with insane taxes.
It's a country where you either win, or you lose, and the system must ensure that those who lost don't get in the way of those still running.