![Biden delivered his farewell address on January 15th.](https://villanovan.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Screenshot-2025-01-29-100759.png)
On Wednesday, Jan. 15, former President Joe Biden delivered a 17-minute farewell address to U.S. citizens from the Oval Office. After 52 years in American politics, from the Senate to the vice presidency and, finally, the highest office in the country, the leader remarked on collective progress and potential warnings as his term came to a close.
Honoring the long-institutionalized “transfer of power” that the U.S.’s democracy was built on in its early days, Biden remarked first on critical, then-breaking news: the ceasefire in the Middle East. Following more than a year of ongoing conflict, Israel and Hamas successfully reached a hostage deal initially outlined by the Biden administration. However, as pointed out, the implementation of this decision now lies squarely on the incoming government—a concept highlighted time and time again throughout the rest of Biden’s speech.
To anyone who even remotely followed the two distinct campaigns run by the 2024 presidential candidates, it is clear that Trump’s and Biden’s (then Harris’) platforms could not have been more different. Everything from their stances on inflation to immigration to public education, to rhetoric used on the campaign trail, to the marketing tactics of the two opponents illustrated the vast ideological disparity that shapes politics as we know it. Even the candidates’ respective social media presences differed – one featuring lots of all-caps messaging and themes of patriotism and authority, the other adopting the summer’s trending “brat” aesthetic and appealing to the younger demographic using references.
Another key portion of the speech was the listing of some key steps made by the Biden administration during the past four years. Developments in infrastructure and industry, such as affordable high-speed internet, U.S. chip production to benefit tech production, and more than $570 billion in bipartisan infrastructure funding have furthered the former president’s campaign promises. Historic gun legislation in 2022, the first of its kind in decades, encouraged groups to petition to courts when someone’s gun ownership posed a potential threat. As described in the address, these measures are mere seeds planted, and it will take years to feel the full effects of the legislation enacted during Biden’s term in office—if future administrations are willing to build off this momentum.
A primary concern expressed in the farewell address was a “dangerous concentration of power” in the hands of the wealthy. The idea of an emerging oligarchy in America is an alarming one, but not necessarily an inaccurate one. Trump’s administration will be the wealthiest in American history, a cabinet of ultra-rich entrepreneurs and billionaires with a whopping total net worth of $340 billion. For reference, the previous Biden administration’s cabinet was only worth $118 billion in comparison, according to the Guardian. As such, Biden cited the “extreme wealth, power and influence that literally threatens our entire democracy.” After all, how can a government be truly of, by, and for the people when many of its top officials only represent the top 1%?
However, Biden championed themes of unity and shared progress amidst the divisiveness that plagues political discourse. Using the analogy of the Statue of Liberty in New York—a creation produced by a diverse, hardworking group of people with a collective goal in mind—he called on citizens, too, to come together in the name of a meaningful common ground. Just as Lady Liberty was shaped by a variety of perspectives, backgrounds and contributions, he explained, so is our nation, and this fact should bring pride rather than polarization. Just as the statue is seen stepping forward, thanks to the work of the many who built her, America should look ahead and work toward meaningful progress that reaches across political, demographic and geographic barriers.