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