had politics to be knee-deep in

[Ostap]

Senator Mitch McConnell has threatened serious consequences for companies that are “dabbling in behaving like a ‘woke’ parallel government.”

Criticisms like McConnell’s amount to transparent hypocrisy. Business has been knee-deep in politics as long as we’ve had politics to be knee-deep in.
source

Hello. What does had politics to be knee-deep in mean? Is this implied: had politics to be knee-deep in by business ? (if it makes any sense at all)

 

[teechar]

as long as we’ve had politics to be knee-deep in.

... for as long as politics has had the potential for something to be deeply involved in it.

 

[Tdol]

But not necessarily business.