Trump’s inaugural brings the world’s billionaire elites en masse to DC

Donald Trump’s inauguration attracts the world’s wealthiest, elevating considerations over the affect of oligarchs on US coverage and democracy

WASHINGTON, USA – The attendees at a US presidential inauguration don’t typically resemble the annual gathering of the world’s richest in Davos, Switzerland, which kicked off on Monday, January 20, however the parallels have been arduous to disregard as Donald Trump was sworn in as US President.

The globe’s wealthiest people attended Trump’s inauguration in Washington on Monday and the glamorous balls to have fun with the brand new president afterwards.

Amongst these seated prominently have been the three richest males on the planet: Elon Musk, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, with a mixed web value of practically $900 billion, in line with Forbes.

(HIGHLIGHTS: Donald Trump’s 2025 inauguration as US president)

To some, the presence of the world’s wealthiest represents the apex of Trump’s return to energy in Washington after trying to overturn the outcomes of the 2020 election, which he misplaced to Joseph Biden.

To others, it stands as a warning that the brand new administration’s priorities in coming years will favor essentially the most well-connected by means of tax, labor, commerce and different insurance policies. Ex-president Joseph Biden in his outgoing tackle warned of a rising oligarchy in america that endangers democracy.

US Senator Elizabeth Warren, a Democrat, famous the favorable seating for the tech CEOs on the inaugural — in entrance of Trump’s Cupboard nominees.

Musk, who spent upwards of $250 million on Trump’s reelection bid, after years in the past suggesting he retire following the January 6, 2021 assault on the US Capitol, is maybe essentially the most well-situated.

The Tesla CEO has been tabbed to steer a brand new panel to seek out methods to chop authorities spending, is predicted to push for speedier regulatory approval for self-driving automobiles, and there are questions on what is going to occur to federal investigations into him and his corporations with Trump in workplace.

“A few of the enterprise individuals who have been cozying as much as Trump characterize corporations that get plenty of authorities contracts or are frightened about authorities regulation,” mentioned Darrell West, senior fellow on the Brookings Establishment.

Following Trump’s November win over Vice President Kamala Harris, quite a few CEOs shortly ingratiated themselves with Trump, notably Zuckerberg.

Meta introduced it could droop factchecking on its US platform. Zuckerberg sat subsequent to Supreme Court docket Justice Brett Kavanaugh on the unique inauguration luncheon on Monday, an occasion additionally attended by Bezos and Apple CEO Tim Prepare dinner, and the Meta CEO additionally hosted a pre-inaugural ball with different billionaire Republican donors on Monday.

Quite a few different members of the Forbes checklist have been in Washington as properly, together with LVMH CEO Bernard Arnault and a number of other members of the family, who rank fifth-richest worldwide; Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai, who chatted up Trump throughout the luncheon, and Mukesh Ambani, the richest man in India.

The tie between enterprise pursuits and US coverage was on show simply earlier than Trump took workplace in a frenzied few days for widespread social media app TikTok.

US legislators in 2024 voted by overwhelming margins to ban the app in america on nationwide safety considerations, solely to look at Trump put the legislation on maintain as he invited TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew to the inauguration on the final minute.

Trump has floated the concept that the US authorities might partially personal TikTok, whereas some media shops have reported that Beijing has mentioned having Musk one way or the other take possession of TikTok.

“You definitely see the plain and overt involvement of the richest individuals on the planet on his first day in workplace,” mentioned David Kass, govt director on the Individuals for Tax Equity.

– Rappler.com