President Joe Biden has warned of a “dangerous concentration of power” among a few wealthy people in the United States in his farewell address to the nation.
Without naming president-elect Donald Trump, Mr Biden said: “Today, an oligarchy is taking shape in America of extreme wealth, power and influence that really threatens our entire democracy, our basic rights and freedom and a fair shot for everyone to get ahead.”
During his speech from the Oval Office in the White House, the president said there was “a dangerous concentration of power in the hands of a few ultra-wealthy people” and warned of “dangerous consequences if their abuse of power is left unchecked”.
Some of the world’s richest individuals and tech titans have flocked to Mr Trump’s side, particularly since his election win in November.
Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, spent more than $100m helping Mr Trump get elected, and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos have also donated to Mr Trump’s inauguration.
During his speech Mr Biden also warned of a “tech-industrial complex” he said was infringing on the rights of Americans and the future of democracy.
The president said the US Constitution should be amended to say no president should have immunity for crimes committed in office, after the Supreme Court granted Mr Trump protection last year from criminal liability over his role in trying to undermine his loss to Mr Biden in 2020.
He also took credit for the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas.
“This plan was developed and negotiated by my team, and it will be largely implemented by the incoming administration,” he said.
“That’s why I told my team to keep the incoming administration fully informed, because that’s how it should be – working together as Americans.”
Mr Biden added: “It will take time to feel the impact of all we’ve done together, but the seeds are planted and they’ll grow and they’ll bloom for decades to come.”
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Content Source: news.sky.com