Outgoing US President Joe Biden warned of the dangers of oligarchs taking power in his farewell speech, ending a decades-long political career.

“Today, an oligarchy of extreme wealth, power and influence is emerging in the United States that truly threatens our entire democracy, our fundamental rights and freedoms,” he said on Wednesday.

Biden, 82, has taken aim at a super-rich “tech-industrial complex” that he says can wield unchecked power over Americans.

He also used his final televised address from the White House to warn about climate change and social media disinformation.

Speaking in the Oval Office where his family gathered, he touted his one-term administration’s record, citing job creation, infrastructure spending, health care, leading the country out of the pandemic and making America a safer country.

However, he added, “it will take time for us to feel the full impact of what we have done together, but the seeds have been planted and they will grow and bloom for decades to come.”

Biden wished Donald Trump’s incoming administration success but then issued a series of pointed warnings, with the president saying “there is so much at stake right now.”

On climate change, he said, “powerful forces want to use their unchecked influence to undo the steps we take to address the climate crisis in the service of their own power and profit”.

Regarding misinformation, Biden warned that “Americans are being inundated with misinformation and disinformation, leading to abuses of power.”

He also criticized social media companies such as Meta, which recently announced it would eliminate independent fact-checkers. “Social media is abandoning fact-checking. The truth is being obscured by lies spun for power and profit,” Biden said.

His attack on the super-rich “tech industrial complex” was an allusion to Silicon Valley executives such as Elon Musk, the world’s richest man who has close ties to Trump and has provided input to his campaign. Huge financial support.

His language echoed that of President Dwight Eisenhower, who famously warned against the “military-industrial complex” in his 1961 farewell address.

Biden seemed to have Musk in mind when he warned of “the dangers of concentration of power in the hands of a few ultra-rich people.”

The term oligarchy refers to a government run by a small number of people, usually for their own benefit.

The president went on to say that “if their abuse of power goes unchecked, it could have dangerous consequences.”

Other tech giants such as Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg are also working to improve relations with Trump ahead of his return to the White House.

Biden ended his speech by calling on Americans to “guard” their country: “May you be the keepers of the flame.” This is a long-standing presidential tradition.

His farewell address was delivered on the same day He announced a ceasefire In his opening remarks, he mentioned the relationship between Israel and Hamas.

Biden said the negotiations were the toughest of his career and was credited with helping seal the deal.

Under the agreement, the ceasefire will take effect on January 19, the day before Trump is inaugurated. The incoming president also took credit for the deal, saying it was only possible because he won the November election.