I see you are not a fan of history.
Let’s start with the “founding Fathers” and their love of the Roman republic. You do know that they formed the Society of the Cincinnati in 1783? Many of their writings point to the Romans as a sort of glorious age of representation, with the senate and res publica.
Now, let’s fast forward to the golden age of Hollywood, where movies up to and including Gladiator have the emperor as a decadent tyrant, and the good heroes fighting to restore the senate. This narrative did not emerge in a vacuum, but the soil it grew from is a part of Americana. No more tyrants, and so on.
As for the reference to the bodyguards selling the office to the highest bidder, this refers to how the Praetorian Guards actually did do this, killing one emperor and letting everyone know they would give the title to the one who gave them the biggest bribe.
