Yes. But a fine art in NYC and SF. San Francisco elites have always been successful in guiding crooked politicians to do their bidding. Article mentions "Willie Brown, former state lawmaker and California Democratic Party leader John Burton and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi". John Burton was a bartender living in my neighborhood, and his congressman brother Phil Burton was well connected to the elites. Phil Burton snagged huge bundles of federal money for projects in the SF Bay Area. Once John Burton became a congressman, he also steered federal money to SF. Willie Brown was no different, but extremely crooked. I worked in city offices and saw how he appointed clueless friends to high-paid positions in order to control departments. I've seen these people up close. The elite buy these politicians, and get a huge return in funding for their pet projects.
No doubt that the elites in Gay Frisco and NYC have made creating and buying politicians into a fine art form.