Outgoing President Biden used a resentful farewell address Wednesday night to warn against what he called a “tech-industrial complex” — claiming that “an oligarchy is taking shape in America” in a clear swipe at Elon Musk and other business titans scrambling to court President-elect Donald Trump.
Biden, 82, sniped at some of the same tech moguls, such as Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg and Amazon’s Jeff Bezos, who were seen as helping the Democrat defeat Trump in 2020 through censorship of unfavorable coverage.
“In my farewell address tonight, I want to warn the country of some things that give me great concern. And that’s a dangerous concentration of power in the hands of a very few ultra-wealthy people and the dangerous consequences if their abuse of power is left unchecked,” Biden said.
“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.”
Disgraced and pardoned first son Hunter Biden was seated just steps away from his father as the outgoing president called on Americans to respect “the courts” and “pay their fair share” of taxes.