It's not unique to the US at all, it's fundamentally just how power dynamics work. Power comes from controlling access over valuable resources (ie power = contr

It's not unique to the US at all, it's fundamentally just how power dynamics work. Power comes from controlling access over valuable resources (ie power = control). Being a middleman gives you some control over something, and therefore some power. The interesting part is how power tends to centralize into the hands of an elite few (ie oligarchies), rather than equalize or concentrate completely into the hands of one. And I think this tends to happen as to reflect the collective wills of society's members.