Biden warns of ultra-wealthy 'oligarchy' threatening US democracy in farewell address to the nation

Biden warns of an ultra-wealthy ‘oligarchy’ threatening democracy in the United States as he delivers his farewell address.

Transcript

00:00My fellow Americans, I'm speaking to you tonight from the Oval Office.

00:05U.S. President Joe Biden used his farewell address on Wednesday to deliver stark warnings

00:10of a dangerous concentration of power in the hands of the ultra-wealthy.

00:14Today, an oligarchy is taking shape in America of extreme wealth, power and influence that

00:22literally threatens our entire democracy, our basic rights and freedoms, and a fair

00:28shot for everyone to get ahead.

00:31Biden referenced former President Dwight Eisenhower's final address in 1961, in which he warned

00:37of a military-industrial complex.

00:42Six decades later, I'm equally concerned about the potential rise of a tech-industrial complex

00:50that could pose real dangers for our country as well.

00:55Americans are being buried under an avalanche of misinformation and disinformation, enabling

01:01the abuse of power.

01:03The free press is crumbling, editors are disappearing, social media is giving up on fact-checking.

01:11Biden used his 15-minute address to offer a model for a peaceful transfer of power and

01:16raise concerns about his successor, Donald Trump, without mentioning his name.

01:21His remarks come after some of the world's richest individuals in the technology industry

01:25have flocked to Trump's side in recent months.