President Biden used his farewell address from the Oval Office on Wednesday to warn Americans of an oligarchy taking shape in the U.S. while issuing warnings of other threats to the nation as he prepares to depart the White House.
After touting some of his accomplishments and lauding a ceasefire that has emerged between Israel and Hamas earlier in the day, Biden in a primetime speech turned his attention to “some things that give me great concern.”
“Today, an oligarchy is taking shape in America of extreme wealth, power and influence that literally threatens our entire democracy, our basic rights and freedoms and a fair shot for everyone to get ahead,” Biden said.
“We’ve seen the consequences all across America, and we’ve seen it before,” Biden added.
He used his speech to more broadly warn about the risks of concentrating power in the hands of just a few individuals or corporations. He spoke of a “tech-industrial complex” and called for a constitutional amendment to ensure presidents would not be immune from prosecution for crimes committed in office.
“In a democracy, there’s another danger to the concentration of power and wealth,” Biden said. “It erodes a sense of unity and common purpose. It causes distrust and division. Participating in our democracy becomes exhausting and even disillusioning. We have to stay engaged in the process.”
Biden’s remarks came as President-elect Trump prepares to take office after his decisive victory in November against Vice President Harris, who took over the Democratic ticket when the president dropped out of the race. Biden has repeatedly painted Trump as a threat to democracy on the campaign trail and warned his economic plans would overwhelmingly benefit the very wealthy and large corporations.
But his farewell address was the first time since the election that Biden revisited those grim warnings, after welcoming Trump to the White House after the election and promising a peaceful transition of power.
Biden did not name Trump during his address.
But one of Trump’s most influential advisers is billionaire Elon Musk, who has been tasked with slashing government spending and regulations. Other tech billionaires, like Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg, have traveled to Florida to meet with Trump in recent weeks and have expressed a greater desire to work with the incoming president.
In his other warnings, Biden said that misinformation and disinformation are top issues facing the American public, calling out technology companies for ending fact checking programs. Zuckerberg, Meta’s CEO, announced last week that his company, which owns Facebook and Instagram, would end its fact checking program.
“Americans are being buried in an avalanche of misinformation and disinformation, enabled in the abuse of power. A free press is crumbling, editors are disappearing, social media’s giving up on fact checking,” Biden said. “The truth is smothered by lies, both for power and profit.”
He also warned about artificial intelligence and reiterated his support for a congressional stock trading ban.
The president closed his remarks — and brought to an end his five decades of public service that culminated with his one term as president — with a call to Americans to protect the idea of the nation.
“After 50 years of public service, I give you my word, I still believe in the idea of where this nation stands. A nation where the strength of our institutions and the character of our people matter and much endure,” he said. “Now it’s your turn to stand guard. May you all be the keeper of the flame. May you keep the faith. I love America, you love it too.”
The president throughout his remarks also made nods to the importance of democracy.
“Our system of separation of powers, checks and balances, may not be perfect but it’s maintained our democracy for 250 years, longer than any other nation in history who’s ever tried such a bold experiment,” he said.
“I wish the incoming administration success because I want America to succeed,” he added, referring to the Trump administration.
The president began and ended his address with the image of the Statue of Liberty, highlighting the symbolism of the New York landmark having been built by many people and swaying “a few inches but she never falls into the current below.”
The president was joined in the Oval Office by first lady Jill Biden, Harris and second gentleman Doug Emhoff. Biden’s son, Hunter Biden, and his family were also present and about a half dozen senior administration officials, including press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, chief of staff Jeff Zients, and top adviser Bruce Reed.
