US President Joe Biden warned that an "oligarchy is forming in the United States" that could harm American democracy, slamming the emerging "tech industrial complex" for bringing dangerous concentrations of wealth and power to the United States.
Biden's remarks during his farewell address to Americans in the Oval Office on Wednesday night amounted to a veiled attack on Donald Trump's closest allies in corporate America, including tech billionaire Elon Musk. Sk, just five days before Trump hands over power to Republicans.
Biden said he wanted to warn the country of the "dangerous concentration of power in the hands of a tiny handful of the ultra-rich" and the dangers of their "unchecked abuse of power."
He cited the late President Dwight Eisenhower's warning against the military-industrial complex in his 1961 farewell address and said interactions between government and technology faced the same harmful risks.
"I am equally concerned about the potential rise of the tech-industrial complex, which could also pose real dangers to our country. Americans are being inundated with misinformation and disinformation, leading to abuses of power. Press freedom is collapsing . Editors are disappearing. Social media is abandoning fact-checking," Biden said.
Biden's words were a reference to Musk, the world's richest man, the owner of social media platform became one of Trump's closest allies during the transition to Trump. Trump's new administration.
A number of Silicon Valley executives, from Amazon's Jeff Bezos to Meta's Mark Zuckerberg, have also embraced Trump since he won the election and are expected to feature prominently at Monday's inauguration in Washington. .
Biden also used his rhetoric to cast a positive light on his one-term presidency, which ultimately led him to belatedly abandon his re-election bid in late July, passing the torch of his campaign against Trump to Vice President Kamala. leading to a major political failure. HARRIS - The effort failed miserably.
Biden's approval ratings hit new lows as he exits the presidency and a political career that spanned more than five decades in Washington. According to FiveThirtyEight's polling average, only 36.7% of Americans approve of his job performance, while 55.8% disapprove.
Biden said he hopes his achievements will be viewed more favorably in the future.
"It will be some time before we feel the full impact of what we have done together, but the seeds have been planted and they will grow and bloom for decades to come," he said.
Biden has faced fierce criticism not only from Republicans but also from Democrats who accuse him of seeking re-election despite his age. He is now 82 years old.
Biden's presidency has been marked by a record job market, a strong recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic and a series of economic legislative achievements. But the pain of high inflation became his huge political weakness.
In foreign affairs, he has been praised for Western support for Ukraine in the wake of Russia's full-scale invasion of the country in 2022, but his response to the Middle East conflict, including staunch support for Israel's war in Gaza, has drawn a backlash from Progressive Democrats that undermined the unity of his political alliance.
It was not until Wednesday, five days before leaving office, that Biden, with the help of Trump aides, was able to reach a ceasefire and release hostages held by Hamas.
"This plan was developed and negotiated by my team and will be implemented primarily by the incoming administration. That's why I told my team to keep the incoming administration fully informed, because that's what Americans should be working on together way,” he said at the beginning of his speech.