Politics corrupted money, especially after the Annis Horribilis of 1913. There were genuine problems with plutocracy going back to the origin of the Republic. But we opted for aegresct medendo (or a cure worse than the disease) by sending gubmint in to regulate wealth, lest wealth own gubmint. Now wealth owns gubmint more than other, when the seething masses aren’t using it to steal their money. Everyone uses it against everyone, you see, which doesn’t sound like the best of all regimes to me.
Wealth owns gubmint more than ever, I meant.