Everywhere you look, American liberalism is awash with big money. From think tanks to congressional campaigns to the culture of big philanthropy, the outsize influence of plutocrats is so ubiquitous that many seem to regard it as a normal, even indispensable, part of political and cultural life — as quintessentially American as watching baseball or being forced to pay a monthly tithe to some bloodsucking corporate insurance conglomerate so you don’t die from a treatable illness.

Nonetheless, the Democratic presidential race is breaking new ground as a case study in just how deeply the money of people and institutions with the means has seeped into the fabric of democracy. From candidates openly courting billionaires at black-tie fundraisers to campaigns that boast intimate ties with private equity and high finance, the immense influence of wealth can be seen everywhere. All it took was a few polls favorable to Bernie Sanders and a handful of headlines containing the words “wealth tax” to get Howard Schultz musing about mounting a spoiler campaign. Not one but two billionaires have jumped into the race since the country’s most gilded caffeine baron got cold feet.

Though the extent to which these efforts will translate into actual votes remains to be seen, Michael Bloomberg’s campaign in particular has already become a powerful illustration of the way billionaires convert their wealth into power as a conscious strategy — and the threat it poses to democracy. To state the most obvious: Bloomberg has already poured in a whopping $58.4 million to carpet-bomb several states with TV and radio advertising — outspending anyone else in the race by exponential margins (fellow billionaire Tom Steyer isn’t all that far behind).