Egypt Daily News – In a farewell speech he delivered on Wednesday evening, days before the end of his term, US President Joe Biden warned of the danger of “an oligarchy forming in America,” also considering that “Americans are immersed in a torrent of misleading news,” which threatens “the abuse of power.”
In his last address to the nation before leaving the White House on Monday, the Democratic president said that the United States faces “a dangerous concentration of power in the hands of a handful of very wealthy people.”
Biden (82 years old) will hand over power on Monday afternoon to his predecessor, Republican billionaire Donald Trump, who has allied himself with executives in the advanced technology sector, led by Elon Musk, the richest man in the world.
He also warned the outgoing president of “dangerous consequences if their abuse of power is not put to an end.” He said in his farewell speech, which was characterized by extreme darkness, “Today an oligarchy is forming in America, whose enormous wealth, power, and influence constitute a tangible threat to our entire democracy, our basic rights, and our freedoms.”
“The truth is suffocated by lies”
Biden also launched an attack on social media, after Musk turned the X website into a right-wing platform, and Meta head Mark Zuckerberg ended fact-checking operations in the United States while seeking to court Trump.
He also warned that “Americans are inundated with a torrent of misleading news,” which could lead to “abuse of power.” “The free press is collapsing. Editors are disappearing. Social media is abandoning fact-checking. The truth is being stifled by lies told for power and profit,” he said.
Biden recalled a stark warning issued by President Dwight Eisenhower in his 1961 farewell address about the dangers of an out-of-control military-industrial complex. “I am equally concerned about the potential rise of the tech-industrial complex,” he added.
Biden devoted part of his gloomy speech to warning of the dangers of not continuing efforts to combat climate change.
He said that there are “major forces” threatening the progress that has been made in combating climate change, “an existential threat that has never been more evident,” pointing to natural disasters that continue to increase, the most recent of which are the massive fires that have been raging for a week in Los Angeles and the devastating hurricane that struck North Carolina State last year.
He also warned against the rise of artificial intelligence, considering that America must seize the initiative in transformative technology in the face of China.
Biden concluded his speech with a farewell tone at the end of a political career that lasted 50 years, which witnessed the former senator making many failed presidential attempts before becoming Vice President Barack Obama, and then President of the United States.
“It has been the greatest honor of my life to lead you as commander in chief,” he said. At the end of his speech as Trump returned for a second term on Monday, Biden told the Americans, “Now it is your turn to be vigilant.”
The farewell speech has become a tradition for American presidents when they leave office. The outgoing president spent most of his last days in power trying to polish a legacy damaged by his decision to run for a second term despite his advanced age.
Biden was forced to withdraw from the race last June after a disastrous debate against the 78-year-old Trump, who achieved a landslide victory over Vice President Kamala Harris.
