There are politicians and there are politicians...in the past most had accomplishments in military, business, career before running for office. Voters years ago wanted to see accomplishments before they would elect someone. Now many begin as politicians and have never done anything else.
I think that’s manifestly untrue. in fact, the exact opposite is true. other than our limited number of general/presidents, all of our best presidents were “only” politicians.
I’m not defending the profession, mind you. but I am insisting that until you get past this, you will never see the real problem.