Political Memes

No, that's also the case in most countries. Corporations and their political influence aren't a US-only phenomenon - they legally own almost all major media outlets around the world, along with holding influential positions in each economy which can pressure their governments into compliance. If a government doesn't earn the general support of the owning class, it doesn't have a realistic chance of remaining in government, either by corporations funding and endorsing alternative parties in elections, or through boss strikes to sabotage the national economy if a government they don't like does somehow get elected (e.g. Allende in Chile). A modern government cannot survive without either the support of major corporations trying to exploit their workers, unless they empower the workers to overpower the corporations and survive off their strength instead (which, in practice, contradicts capitalism).

Capitalism doesn't exist without forming those corporations, so governments tending to billionaires isn't some weird quirk, or some US phenomenon, it's a systematic trait of capitalism which happens every time.