In his farewell speech to the nation, President Biden took one last opportunity to frame his legacy and to deliver a warning about the threat from unchecked abuse of power and wealth and what he described as an emerging oligarchy.
"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," he said.
"Powerful forces want to wield their unchecked influence to eliminate the steps we've taken to tackle the climate crisis, to serve their own interest for power and profit," Biden said. "We must not be bullied to sacrifice in the future, the future of our children and our grandchildren."
"Americans are being buried under an avalanche of misinformation and disinformation enabling the abuse of power," Biden said. "The free press is crumbling, editors are disappearing. Social media is giving up on fact-checking. The truth is smothered by lies told for power and for profit."
The address was an echo of the farewell address that then-President Dwight Eisenhower delivered to the nation in 1961, in which he famously warned about the dangers of an emerging “military industrial complex.” Today, Biden said, the threat he sees is coming from a “tech industrial complex.”
And without mentioning President-elect Donald Trump by name, he said the Constitution should be amended “to make clear that no president — no president — is immune from crimes that he or she commits while in office.”
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