Just a thought experiment... is the “scale” value of the Federal government different (as designed) than the scale value of the state or local government? I think it is, with the local government having more say in community values issues (i.e., being further left than the feds). With regard to that, I can see more local control within the community based on community values and standards as being acceptable. The job of the Fed then becomes assuring that local laws are not onerous and do not deprive the local citizens of their God-given rights.
With that in mind, I can see the Federal role being around an 8 with the local governments ranging from 5-8 being acceptable. The reality is, as you or someone else said, that some conservatives want control of others so they can impose their will rather than the same degree of control by liberals. To me, that is not conservatism, yet it somes down in the “right vs left” as being right wing.
I believe that our nation was created to have a botton-up government, in which power was like a truangle: the People were the base & had the most authority...then as you proceed from them to the local, coubty, state, & federal govt's, it became smaller. Notice also that as the seat of gov't drifted away from the People, the less power it had over them. I dunno if I'm making any sense, but that's the way I look @ it.