I am fully aware that the founders were plutocrats, and I agree with you that they wanted to do what would benefit themselves. However, the estimation of democracy that I'm referring to in this article is based on a number of factors used by international organizations to grade countries throughout the world. These organizations unanimously referred to the U.S. as a democracy up until recently and now no longer do so for the reasons I deliniate in the article. Think of this as a comparison and contrast between the 1950s (at least for white people), when housing, healthcare, and education were affordable with one paycheck per family, and the 2020s--when even decent food is out of reach for many and when some people are clamoring for a dictator who would allow them to vote only if they voted for him.