Days after Donald Trump took office in 2017, Google co-founder Sergey Brin joined protests against the new administration's immigration policies, warning that they threatened America's "Basic Values".
On Monday, he joined a dozen billionaires in the prime seats at Trump's second inauguration, raising eyebrows at a man who has promised to deport millions of immigrants, use U.S. justice to go after political opponents and launch sweeping tariffs. express appreciation.
Trump's inauguration at the U.S. Capitol highlighted the president's deepening ties to industrial giants and a shift in stance from business leaders who had previously scorned him. Four of the world's five richest people outrank his own cabinet members, and some of their spouses occupy governorships and congressional seats.
The packed podium was joined by Elon Musk, a former supporter of Joe Biden who spent $250 million to elect Trump, and Meta's Mark Zuckerberg, who this month deposed with a peace proposal Fact-checking on social media platforms. Trump and Amazon's Jeff Bezos blocked his newspaper editorial board from endorsing Kamala Harris.
A few meters away are Europe's richest man Bernard Arnault, head of the LVMH luxury goods empire, India's Mukesh Ambani and Apple CEO Tim Cook, like other tech CEOs, donated $1 million to Trump before the proceedings began. They join a roster of Cabinet nominees who are billionaires in their own right, including Commerce Secretary nominee Howard Lutnick and Treasury Department nominee Scott Bessent.
"This man is power," Lutnick said of Trump during a speech Monday at Capital One Arena, where the president's supporters gathered to watch him be sworn in. "He is power."
Lutnick was followed by Musk, who drew thunderous applause when he promised to help usher in a "golden age" for Trump.
In a sign of Musk's growing power and influence, the crowd also cheered the billionaire's mention of Trump's pledge to send astronauts to Mars — a move that would benefit Musk's SpaceX but not the U.S. government Inside scientists thought the move was wasteful and unnecessary.
This display of corporate power was slammed by some members of Trump’s core “MAGA” support base. Trump's former chief strategist Steve Bannon this week lashed out at Musk and the tech moguls in the president's orbit, echoing Biden, calling them "oligarchs" and claiming they are "Democrats" and created by the lords of easy money”.
Democrats were also quick to use the inauguration spectacle to undermine Trump's populist credentials, with the Democratic National Committee claiming the president "left his own supporters literally in the cold while a billionaire worth more than $1 trillion Earned a front-row seat" suggests he will always "put himself and his ultra-wealthy supporters ahead of the American people."
Trump supporters gathered at Congressional Arena One on Monday to watch the inauguration, where the billionaires' arrival was widely welcomed after the inauguration was moved indoors. Many Maga followers view them as supplicants rather than puppet masters.
Minnesota farmer Cheri Fiedler says she hopes tech billionaire's prominence means "all censorship will go away" and predicts diversity, equity and inclusion at the world's largest companies after Trump's win The sex policy will also be eliminated.
"A lot of business leaders were..." added Paul Kirby, a Missouri accountant who traveled to Washington for the ceremony. "All of these leaders basically caved. . . (Trump) takes control and he regains power. "