Don’t do this if you’re an American—it’s illegal to bribe anywhere in the world.
The other downside to bribery is if you have money, you become a real target as everyone will start harassing you in exchange for bribes.
No one is fleecing you, and the costs are predictable using basic math.
You may be thinking of Lobbying, which is a totally different phenomenon.
Is this a US-citizen thing? I haven't heard that before and am curious.