President Biden warned in his farewell speech of an “ultra-wealthy” “oligarchy” posing a menace to America as huge tech CEOs have been warming as much as President-elect Trump in current months — regardless of his personal administration accepting donations from Democratic mega-donors.
Biden spoke Wednesday as studies emerged this week that Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg – the three most rich folks on this planet who collectively are price greater than $850 billion, in keeping with Forbes – will probably be seated subsequent to Trump’s cabinet picks and elected officers subsequent Monday at his inauguration.
“I’ve little doubt that America is able to proceed to succeed. That is why in my farewell handle tonight, I wish to warn the nation of some issues that give me nice concern. And that is the harmful focus of energy within the arms of a only a few, ultra-wealthy folks. And the harmful penalties if their abuse of energy is left unchecked,” Biden mentioned from the Oval Workplace.
“Right now, an oligarchy is taking form in America of utmost wealth, energy and affect that actually threatens our complete democracy, our primary rights, freedoms, and a good shot for everybody to get forward,” Biden continued. “We see the implications all throughout America, and we have seen it earlier than, greater than a century in the past. However the American folks stood as much as the robber barons again then and busted the belief. They did not punish the rich, they simply made the rich play by the principles all people else needed to.”
BIDEN TAKENS SOLE CREDIT FOR ISRAEL-HAMAS DEAL, WARNS OF ‘OLIGARCHY’ IN FAREWELL SPEECH
U.S. Speaker of the Home Mike Johnson, President-elect Donald Trump, Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk and Vice President-elect JD Vance attend the one hundred and twenty fifth Military-Navy soccer sport at Northwest Stadium in Landover, Md., on Dec. 14. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Photos)
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Musk, the CEO of SpaceX and Tesla, Bezos, the founding father of Amazon, and Zuckerberg, the CEO of Meta, have all met with Trump at his Mar-a-Lago dwelling in Florida following his election victory in November.
In the course of the election cycle, Musk gave at the least $277 million in donations to assist get Trump and different Republicans elected, in keeping with The Washington Post, which cited filings from the Federal Election Fee.
Tech giants together with Amazon, Meta, Apple, Google and Microsoft are reported to have donated $1 million every to Trump’s inauguration on Jan. 20.
A side-by-side of Mark Zuckerberg and Donald Trump. (Getty Photos)
In 2023, George Soros and different outstanding billionaires bolstered Biden’s re-election efforts throughout the third quarter, filings reviewed by Fox Information Digital present.
The deep-pocketed donors every reduce six-figure contributions to the Biden Victory Fund — a joint fundraising enterprise that consists of Biden’s marketing campaign, the Democratic Nationwide Committee (DNC), all 50 state Democratic events and Washington, D.C.’s Democratic committee — between July and September.
Later in 2023, Fox Information Digital confirmed {that a} Soros-funded group pushed $15 million to a nonprofit tied to Biden’s primary exterior tremendous PAC for the 2024 elections to judge essential coverage issues, data reveal.
Tax paperwork supplied to Fox Information Digital confirmed that the Open Society Coverage Heart, an advocacy nonprofit within the Soros-bankrolled Open Society Foundations community, funneled $15.18 million to Future Forward USA Action in 2022 for analysis and “content material testing on essential coverage points.”
That very same 12 months, billionaire Reid Hoffman, LinkedIn co-founder, dropped a huge six-figure donation backing Biden’s re-election bid.
Way back to 2020, billionaires Howard Schultz, former Starbucks CEO, former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and investor Tom Steyer made substantial donations to the Biden marketing campaign.
BIDEN’S RE-ELECTION EFFORTS BOLSTERED BY MASSIVE DONATIONS FROM GEORGE SOROS AND OTHER BILLIONAIRES
For his half within the incoming Trump administration, Musk has been tasked with heading up the newly created Division of Authorities Effectivity (DOGE), which is able to study points of presidency spending, waste, effectivity and operations.
With a purpose to try this, Musk may occupy space within the Eisenhower Government Workplace Constructing proper subsequent to the West Wing that homes the majority of workplace house for White Home staffers, the New York Occasions reported.
HOLLYWOOD MOGULS, BILLIONAIRES FLOOD BIDEN’S VICTORY FUND WITH SIX-FIGURE DONATIONS
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump greets Elon Musk as he arrives to attend a viewing of the launch of the sixth take a look at flight of the SpaceX Starship rocket on Nov. 19, 2024 in Brownsville, Texas. (Brandon Bell/Getty Photos)
Biden additionally mentioned in his farewell speech that American management and expertise is an “unparalleled supply of innovation that may remodel lives,” however “we see the identical risks, the focus of expertise, energy and wealth.”
“You realize, in his farewell handle, President Eisenhower spoke of the risks of the army industrial advanced. He warned us then about, and I quote, the potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced energy, finish of quote. Six many years later, I am equally involved concerning the potential rise of a tech industrial advanced that would pose actual risks for our nation, as properly,” Biden added.
“People are being buried underneath an avalanche of misinformation and disinformation, enabling the abuse of energy. The free press is crumbling. Editors are disappearing. Social media is giving up on reality checking. The reality is smothered by lies instructed for energy and for revenue,” the president continued. “We should maintain the social platform accountable to guard our youngsters, our households and our very democracy from the abuse of energy.
Jeff Bezos, proper, is predicted to have a outstanding seat at Trump’s inauguration subsequent week, studies say. (Eugene Gologursky/Getty Photos for The New York Occasions)
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“In the meantime, synthetic intelligence is probably the most consequential expertise of our time, maybe of all time. Nothing gives extra profound prospects and dangers for our economic system and our safety, our society, for humanity. Synthetic intelligence even has the potential to assist us reply my name to finish most cancers as we all know it. However except safeguards are in place, AI might spawn new threats to our rights, our lifestyle, to our privateness, how we work and the way we defend our nation. We should be certain AI is secure and reliable and good for all humankind,” Biden mentioned.
Fox Information’ Andrew Mark Miller, Joe Schoffstall, Jessica Chasmar and Diana Stancy contributed to this report.
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