There is a substantial difference between the standard lobbying and greasing the legislative wheels, and what's going on with this current administration.

Even if companies were pretending to play by the rules before, at least they had some need to put in the effort to pretend. When a society can see belligerent ostentatious corruption going on as the norm, nothing good can follow.

At least of the previous couple US election, "people" paid more than a billion dollar each wanna-be president

That is investment aka corruption