SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
mark zuckerberg
'Extremely Dangerous Time': Sanders Warns of Oligarchs' War on Working Class
"Does anyone really think that the oligarchs give a damn about ordinary Americans?" the senator asked. "Trust me, they don't."
Feb 11, 2025
As U.S. President Donald Trump and billionaire Elon Musk on Tuesday continued their effort to gut the federal government, Sen. Bernie Sanders warned that "the oligarchs, with their unlimited amounts of money, are waging a war on the working class of our country, and it is a war that they are intent on winning."
A week after delivering a speech that sounded the alarm about "America's dangerous movement toward oligarchy, authoritarianism, and kleptocracy," Sanders (I-Vt.) took the Senate floor again to target the world's three richest people—Musk, Jeff Bezos, and Mark Zuckerberg—and the politicians who serve them.
"We are living in an extremely dangerous time," the seantor said Tuesday. "Future generations will look back at this moment—what we do right now—and remember whether we had the courage to defend our democracy against the growing threats of oligarchy and authoritarianism."
As chair of Trump's so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), Musk's targets have included the U.S. Agency for International Development, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Department of Education, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and a critical U.S. Treasury Department payment system. Reporting—and remarks from the billionaire—suggest that the agencies responsible for Medicaid, Medicare, and Social Security are next.
"As we speak, right now, Elon Musk, the wealthiest man on the planet, is attempting to dismantle major agencies of the federal government which are designed to protect the needs of working families and the disadvantaged," said Sanders. "These agencies were created by the U.S. Congress and it is Congress' responsibility to maintain them, to reform them, or to end them. It is not Mr. Musk’s responsibility. What Mr. Musk is doing is patently illegal and unconstitutional—and must be ended."
Sanders also detailed Trump and his allies' attacks on the federal judiciary, which has delivered a series of blows to the Republican president's agenda since he took office last month.
"Mr. Trump and his friends are not just trying to undermine two of the three pillars of our constitutional government—Congress and the courts—they are also going after the media, in a way that we have never seen in the modern history of this country," the senator said. While recognizing that the media "makes mistakes every day," he added that "I do hope that every member of Congress understands that you cannot have a functioning democracy, you cannot have a free flow of information, you cannot have the pursuit of truth, without an independent press."
The senator also how the top three billionaires impact what information reaches people by buying news outlets and social media platforms—as Musk did with Twitter, which he rebranded X, and Bezos did with The Washington Post and Twitch. Zuckerberg, meanwhile, has made his money through Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram.
"They will use the enormous media operations they own to deflect attention away from the impact of their policies while they 'entertain us to death,'" Sanders warns. "They and their fellow oligarchs will continue within our corrupt campaign finance system to spend huge amounts of money to buy politicians in both major political parties."
"Does anyone really think that the oligarchs give a damn about ordinary Americans?" he asked. "Trust me, they don't."
Sanders warned that "if we do not stop them, they will soon be going after the healthcare, nutrition, housing, and educational programs that protect the most vulnerable people in our country—all so that they can raise they money they need to provide huge tax breaks for themselves and for others billionaires. As modern-day kings who believe they have the absolute right to rule, they will sacrifice, without hesitation, the well-being of working people in order to protect their power and their privileges."
However, he also stressed that "the worst fear of the ruling class of our country is that the American people—whether they are Black or white or Latino, whether they are urban or rural, whether they are young or old, gay or straight, whatever—the fear of the ruling class is that the American people come together to demand a government that represents all of us, not just the people on top."
"The oligarch's nightmare is that we will not allow ourselves to be divided up by race, religion, sexual orientation, or country of origin and will come together and have the courage to take them on," he declared. "If we stand together, we're gonna win this fight, and not only will we save American democracy, we're gonna create the kind of nation that I think most of us know we should become."
Keep ReadingShow Less
Trump Has No Right to Move Us to Oligarchy, Authoritarianism, and Kleptocracy
Instead of moving toward an economy which is designed to benefit the very richest people in our society, we have got to fight hard to create a government that works for all of us.
Feb 05, 2025
The following is a lightly-edited version of remarks given by Independent Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) on the Senate floor on February 4, 2025.
We find ourselves in a pivotal moment in American history, and millions of Americans, by their actions or lack of action, will determine the future of this country for decades.
In my view, the Trump administration is moving this country very aggressively into an oligarchic form of society where extraordinary power rests in the hands of a small number of unelected multi-billionaires.
These three multibillionaires are working with Trump because they understand one very important reality. Trump’s policies are designed to make the very richest people in this country even richer.
The Trump administration is moving this country very aggressively into an authoritarian society where the rule of law, and our Constitution, are being ignored and undermined in order to give more power to the White House and the billionaires who now control our government.
In my view, the Trump administration is moving this country very rapidly toward a kleptocracy—where the function of government is not to serve the people of America, but to enrich those who are in power.
I think that today is a good day to recall what one of our great presidents said at Gettysburg in November of 1863. Looking out at a battlefield where thousands of Union soldiers had just sacrificed their lives in the defense of freedom, former U.S. President Abraham Lincoln famously stated:
The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us—that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion—that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain—that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom—and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the Earth.
Government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the Earth.
Under President Donald Trump we are not seeing a “government of the people, by the people, for the people.” Quite the contrary.
We are seeing a government of the billionaire class, by the billionaire class, for the billionaire class. And it’s not being done secretly. It’s right out there for all to see.
Several weeks ago, Donald Trump was inaugurated for his second term as president of the United States. Standing right behind him were the three richest men in the country—Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, and Mark Zuckerberg—worth a combined $920 billion. These three men have more wealth than the bottom half of America—170 million people. And I should point out, and this should tell you exactly where we are going as a nation, these three men have become some $232 billion richer since Trump was elected. In just two weeks under Trump their wealth has exploded by $232 billion dollars.
This is how an oligarchic system works. Elon Musk, the richest person in the world, and now a key part of the administration, spent over $277 million to get Trump elected. In other words, within a corrupt campaign finance system he helped buy the election for Donald Trump.
Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg, the second and third wealthiest people in our country, both kicked a million each into Trump’s inauguration fund.
And let’s remember that Mr. Bezos, who owns The Washington Post, rescinded the endorsement of former Vice President Kamala Harris of The Washington Post’s editorial board. Mr. Bezos was showing early on that he was willing to bend the knee for Donald Trump.
Mark Zuckerberg, the founder and CEO of Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram, agreed to settle a lawsuit with Trump for $25 million.
These three multibillionaires are working with Trump because they understand one very important reality. Trump’s policies are designed to make the very richest people in this country even richer.
Since Trump’s election, Mr. Musk has become $154 billion richer, Mr. Bezos has become $35 billion richer, and Mr. Zuckerberg has become $43 billion richer.
I am growing increasingly concerned that in our country, under the leadership of President Trump, we are moving rapidly towards authoritarianism.
And all over this country people are alarmed and shocked by what they are seeing.
Just a few examples.
Last week, Trump attempted to suspend all federal grants and loans in direct violation of the U.S. Constitution and federal law. As every third grader knows, the power of the purse belongs to Congress, not the president.
Let’s be clear. The president can recommend legislation, he can veto legislation, but he does not have the power to unilaterally terminate funding and legislation passed by the U.S. Congress. That is a dangerous and blatantly unconstitutional act.
And I should add that Trump’s blocking of federal funding would have had an horrific impact on millions of Americans who utilize programs like Medicaid, Head Start, community health centers, Meals on Wheels, homeless veterans’ programs, and many, many other initiatives.
Tens of millions of Americans, including some of the most vulnerable people in our country, were impacted by that decision.
But that’s not all.
A few days ago, Trump fired 17 inspectors general—independent government watchdogs that were created by Congress, in the wake of the Watergate scandal, to prevent the abuse of power by the executive branch.
Last week, President Trump fired a member of the National Labor Relations Board, and in so doing, effectively neutered the only federal agency in America with the authority to hold corporations accountable for illegal union busting and to protect the constitutional right of workers to form a union and to collectively bargain for better wages, benefits, and working conditions.
Not only is this move blatantly illegal, it is exactly what Elon Musk, the owner of Tesla, and Jeff Bezos, the owner of Amazon, have been fighting for for months. This is a huge gift to the two wealthiest people in our country who are both strongly anti-union.
The president also illegally fired members of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission—the only independent commission in our country that protects workers against discrimination in the workplace.
Further, and this should upset every American regardless of political view, in direct violation of the Constitution and federal law, Trump is intimidating the media with lawsuits against ABC, CBS, Meta, and the Des Moines Register. His FCC is now threatening to investigate PBS and NPR. Take a deep breath my fellow Americans.
What Trump is essentially saying to every media outlet in America: If you say or do anything that is critical of me, that displeases me, you may be subject to a lawsuit or a federal investigation.
If this is not a direct attack on the First Amendment, the U.S. Constitution, and Freedom of Speech, I don’t know what is.
But that’s not all.
Elon Musk and his unelected minions at DOGE have forced out officials at the Treasury Department and illegally shut down USAID—a program which, among other things, helps feed and provide medical help to starving and desperate children all over the world. Presidents, much less unelected billionaires, do not have the unilateral right to shut down federal agencies established by Congress.
When we talk about the dangerous movement towards authoritarianism let us not forget Trump’s pardoning of the January 6 insurrectionists who injured 174 police officers at the Capitol.
Even worse, Trump is undermining the FBI by investigating the agents there who helped bring these violent criminals to justice.
In other words, what Trump is saying is that violence against police officers, when done in his name is OK, but when law enforcement officers try to hold criminals accountable that is not OK.
Under Trump, we are rapidly moving toward a kleptocracy as well.
Just before Trump was inaugurated, he and his wife Melania launched their own cryptocurrency coins giving them the potential to earn tens of billions of dollars.
If Wall Street CEOs tried to bribe the president with a bag full of money that would be against the law.
But now, they don’t have to do that.
Today, if a multi-billionaire or the head of a foreign country wants to curry favor with the president, all they have to do is buy his cryptocurrency coins and, when they do that, they are directly enriching Donald Trump and the first lady.
That is unacceptable and cannot stand.
So, the question then becomes, where do we go from here?
Instead of moving toward an economy which is designed to benefit the very richest people in our society, we have got to fight hard to create a government that works for all of us, not just Mr. Musk or Mr. Bezos or Mr. Zuckerberg and other multi-billionaires.
At a time of massive wealth and income inequality, we must not provide more tax breaks to billionaires paid for by huge cuts in Medicaid and other programs that working families and low-income people desperately need.
But let me tell you what we should be doing.
At a time when 85 million Americans are uninsured or under-insured, we have got to do what every major country on Earth does and that is to guarantee healthcare as a human right to every man, woman, and child in this country.
At a time when 1 out of 4 Americans cannot afford the medicine that their doctors prescribe, we have got to end the absurdity of Americans paying by far the highest prices in the world for prescription drugs.
We have got to cut the cost of prescription drugs in half.
The federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour is a starvation wage. While 60% of our people live paycheck to paycheck, we must raise that minimum wage to a living wage, at least $17 an hour. If you work 40 hours a week, you should not be living in poverty.
Mr. Musk and Mr. Bezos want to make it harder for workers to join unions. Well, we have got to do exactly the opposite. We must pass the PRO Act so that anti-union CEOs cannot act unconstitutionally to deny workers the right to join a union.
At a time when we need the best educated workforce in the world, we need to have the best public schools in the world. And, among other things, that means we need to substantially raise teacher salaries. If we want the best and the brightest to become educators, no teacher in America should earn less than $60,000 a year.
All over this country, we have a major housing crisis. And it’s not just the 800,000 who are homeless. It is millions of working families who are spending 40, 50, or 60% of their limited incomes on housing. Instead of spending almost a trillion dollars a year on a wasteful and bloated Pentagon budget, we have got to build millions of units of low-income and affordable housing. And when we do that, we put large numbers of people to work at good-paying union jobs.
I hear from Trump supporters that the president won the election and he has been given this huge mandate to do whatever he wants. Well, no president has the right to move us to oligarchy, authoritarianism, and kleptocracy. But more importantly, let us not forget that while Trump did win this election, he actually received 4 million fewer votes in 2024 than Biden did in 2020 when Biden won the election.
Keep ReadingShow Less
Bernie Sanders Warns of US Government of, by, and for the 'Billionaire Class'
"The Trump administration is moving this country very aggressively into an authoritarian society where the rule of law, and our Constitution, are being ignored and undermined."
Feb 04, 2025
As U.S. President Donald Trump and billionaire Elon Musk take a wrecking ball to the federal government—sparking lawsuits, protests, and calls for congressional Democrats to serve as a true opposition party—Sen. Bernie Sanders on Tuesday delivered an impassioned floor speech decrying "America's dangerous movement toward oligarchy, authoritarianism, and kleptocracy."
"The Trump administration is moving this country very aggressively into an authoritarian society where the rule of law, and our Constitution, are being ignored and undermined in order to give more power to the White House and the billionaires who now control our government," said Sanders (I-Vt.), who caucuses with Democrats and sought the party's presidential nomination in 2016 and 2020.
Invoking former President Abraham Lincoln's 1863 Gettysburg Address, Sanders said that "I fear very much that under President Trump, we are not seeing a 'government of the people, by the people, for the people,' but rather a government of the billionaire class, by the billionaire class, and for the billionaire class."
Recalling Trump's January 20 inauguration, Sanders noted that "standing right behind him were the three richest men in America—Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, and Mark Zuckerberg. Combined, these three men are worth a combined $920 billion."
In fact, the men—respectively known for Tesla, Amazon, and Meta—are the three richest individuals on the planet. As of press time, the Bloomberg billionaire list estimated the Big Tech trio's combined wealth at $932 billion, while Forbesput it at $911.7 billion.
"These three men own more wealth than the bottom half of American society—170 million people," said Sanders. "And I should point out—and this should tell you exactly where we are going as a nation—these three men... have become some $232 billion richer since Trump was elected a few weeks ago."
"This is how an oligarchic system works," the senator stressed, highlighting the quarter-billion dollars Musk dumped into getting Trump elected and that the billionaire is now head of the president's so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), the entity leading many of the administration's attacks on the federal workforce and various agencies.
The other two billionaires "both kicked a million dollars each into Trump's inauguration fund," Sanders continued. Additionally, Bezos, who owns The Washington Post, blocked the newspaper from endorsing the Republican president's Democratic challenger, former Vice President Kamala Harris, and Zuckerberg settled a lawsuit with Trump for $25 million.
In addition to detailing how the world's richest people are working with Trump because they understand what's in it for them, Sanders sounded the alarm about various actions the president has taken since returning to power last month, including his federal funding freeze—which has been temporarily blocked by two U.S. judges—and his purges of inspectors general, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and the National Labor Relations Board.
Sanders also pointed to Trump's pardoning of insurrectionists who stormed the Capitol on January 6, 2021 and intimidation of the press—including a Federal Communications Commission investigation into National Public Radio and Public Broadcasting Service—as well as Musk's targeting of the U.S. Agency for International Development and Treasury Department.
The senator also made the case for what the government should be doing instead: serving working people with policies that raise wages and promote union membership, make education and healthcare accessible to all, and tackle the nation's housing crisis.
"Now is the time for us to come together like never before and make certain we do not move toward oligarchy, make certain we do not move toward authoritarianism or a kleptocracy," he said. "And most importantly, in the richest country in the history of the world, we must understand that we have the capability of providing a decent life for all of our people."
Keep ReadingShow Less
Most Popular