stupid government is the root cause - and government is chosen by voters and does what voters want it to do. China is monarchy and monarchs listen to no one.
However I agree that democracies around the globe mostly work, in the sense that voters get what they are voting for.
The only reason we imagine that there is a distinction is because most voters are too lazy to talk to the person they hired, so those who do stand out.
one is a large corporation with money paying for access and favors, the other is a regular person who votes. Absolutely absurd.
It remains that the system of government in the US expects regular lobbying from all voters. Without other qualifiers, lobbyists and voters are the same thing.