Trump's 'Oligarchic Friends' Gain $210B In a Day: Bernie Sanders Says the Economy Is 'Insanely Rigged'

Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont lashed out at the Trump Administration, alleging that Americans are now living in an oligarchy after seven of the wealthiest people on Earth became $210 billion richer within 24 hours, and 'not last week' or over the 'past decade.'

The massive wealth surge in such a short span happened as millions of American families struggled to pay for rent, food, healthcare, childcare, and gas amid surging inflation, jobs market uncertainty, and geopolitical volatility. Sanders highlighted this worsening situation, while highlighting in a recent social media that the US economy is 'insanely rigged.'

In a detailed post on the social media platform X this week, Sanders highlighted, seven of Trump's 'Big Tech oligarchic friends' also became collectively richer by over $1.5 trillion since Trump was reelected on 5 November, 2024. Sanders further added that these seven men now have a total worth over $2.8 trillion at a time when the rate of childhood poverty in the US stood at the highest relative to any other wealthy nation.

'Young adults have a lower standard of living than their parents and over 20% of our seniors are trying to survive on an annual income of $15,000 a year or less,' Sanders had remarked.

The Massive Wealth Surge on Monday

In a late Tuesday post, Sanders said that on the day before, Trump's friends led by Elon Musk and Larry Page had a good day. Sanders compared how their net worth has skyrocketed since election day.

On Monday, Musk, already the richest person in the world, saw his net worth jump $164.8 billion to $1.4 trillion following the historic SpaceX IPO. Sanders highlighted that Musk is now worth $1.1 trillion more than on election day. Musk had mentioned earlier this year that his $1 trillion pay package and majority ownership of his businesses were not for the money but to ensure he retains control of his ventures in the future.

Google co-founder Larry Page's net worth also soared by $7.61 billion to $314 billion on Monday. He is reportedly worth $161 billion more compared with election day.

Meanwhile, Sergey Brin and Jeff Bezos' net worths also rose $7.01 billion and $6.96 billion, respectively, on the same day. Note that their respective fortunes have gained by $148 billion and $46 billion since election day.

Even Oracle's Larry Ellison and Dell Technologies' Michael Dell got richer on Monday by $8.92 billion and $5.86 billion, respectively. Ellison's total net worth gain since election day is around $63 billion, while Dell's fortune has seen a meteoric rise during the same duration.

Lastly, Sanders highlighted how Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg gained $9.16 billion earlier this week, taking his net worth to $211 billion. His wealth has increased by $8 billion since Trump's reelection.

Sanders' Plan to Give People Ownership of AI Companies

As AI firms reshape the economy and race toward trillion-dollar valuations, Sanders proposed in an interview this week a transfer of wealth and power from the industry to the public.

The proposed legislation would reportedly form a sovereign wealth fund managed by an independent commission and financed through a one-time 50% tax on the stock of the largest AI firms. Sanders believes this tax could create a $7 trillion fund that would generate hundreds of billions of dollars annually in direct payments to Americans and programmes involving health care, education and housing.

'The benefits cannot simply go to the handful of wealthy corporations. They will be shared by the American people,' Sanders had concluded.