President Joe Biden gave a fiery final farewell to the nation Wednesday evening, tearing into Donald Trump as he touted his policies over the past four years.
The 82-year-old president did not shy away from ripping into his top political foe Trump who will be sworn in as the 47th president in just five days.
Biden used his final message to Americans delivered from behind the Resolute Desk in the Oval Office to warn the country of ‘some things that give me great concern.’
That included not-so-subtle digs at Trump as he said the most ‘dangerous’ concern is putting power in the hands of ‘a very few ultra wealthy people.’
‘Today, an oligarchy is taking shape in America of extreme wealth, power and influence that literally threatens our entire democracy, our basic rights and freedoms, and a fair shot for everyone to get ahead.’
He also listed his most cherished accomplishments including his infrastructure law, clean energy initiatives and bringing the country out of the COVID pandemic.
Top political experts and speechwriters across Republican and Democratic administrations were divided on their evaluations of Biden’s final political performance.
Jonathan Bronitsky: ‘A hollowed-out man’
Grade: C+
‘Biden seemed relaxed,’ said co-founder and CEO of ATHOS Jonathan Bronitsky.
That’s most likely because he’s been ‘getting plenty of rest, hiding from the press, the American people, and the world’ over the last few months.
President Joe Biden delivers his farewell address to the nation from the Oval Office
Jill Biden looks on as Joe speaks
Bronitsky, who also served as the chief speechwriter for Trump’s Attorney General Bill Barr, said Biden’s early anecdote about the Statue of Liberty was ‘touching,’ but clearly signaled it was not written by him.
‘Even his progressive speechwriters seemed out of gas,’ he went on.
‘After a second Trump victory and more than 77 million votes, they couldn’t muster one more desperate gasp of fire.’
Bronitsky said the speech, that should have been delivered two – or four – years ago, was out of touch.
‘He took credit for things he didn’t do, lied about achievements that never happened, and exaggerated the challenges his administration supposedly overcame.’
And Biden’s 82 years on earth was on full display as he ‘rumbled, bumbled, and stumbled’ his way through.
‘This summation of a political career is nothing short of tragic. Civics class teaches us elected office is a noble pursuit, but this is what it’s come to: a hollowed-out man squinting into a teleprompter, struggling to spit out someone else’s words.’
David Litt: ‘Biden warned us’
Grade: A
Former President Obama’s senior speechwriter David Litt told DailyMail.com that Biden’s oligarchy warning was critical.
It will be seen as one of his ‘final acts of public service to the country he loved and spent his life fighting for.’
Biden used his final message to Americans delivered from behind the Resolute Desk in the Oval Office to warn the country of ‘some things that give me great concern’
‘George Washington used his farewell address to warn America about the dangers of faction,’ he explained.
‘Dwight D. Eisenhower warned us of the dangers about the military-industrial complex. And Joe Biden warned us of the dangers of oligarchy.’
Litt said that ‘MAGA commentators’ will ‘doubtless regard Biden’s words with the class and basic decency for which they’re renowned.’
‘But the rest of America – including the America that voted for Trump yet worried he would be too extreme if elected – won’t be so glib.’
He says that there are signs ‘buyer’s remorse’ with Trump is already setting in with his ‘radical and unqualified’ Cabinet picks – like Pete Hegseth.
‘In retrospect, Washington and Eisenhower’s warnings came too late. Was Biden’s delivered just in the nick of time? That’s for us, not him, to decide.’
Jessica Anderson: ‘He’s sleepwalking out’
Grade: F
Jessica Anderson, president of Sentinel Action Fund, told DailyMail.com that the president ‘appears to be sleepwalking out of office.’
She said the farewell speech was nothing more than a ‘feeble attempt to rewrite the history of his failed presidency.’
‘Biden’s last-ditch effort to rehabilitate his historically low approval ratings and dismal record only reminded Americans why they elected President Trump and a Republican Majority—to put our country on a new path and correct the damage from Biden’s far-left agenda.’
She went on to say the address won’t ease the ‘pain and suffering caused by his policies’ and looks forward to the GOP takeover in Washington.
Joel Payne: ‘Biden surprised us’
Grade: A-
Democratic strategist Joel Payne said that Biden ‘surprised us’ with his performance tonight.
‘I think a lot of Democrats will be pleasantly surprised with how Joe Biden showed up tonight,’ he told DailyMail.com.
Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff, Vice-President Kamala Harris and First Lady Jill Biden listen to President Joe Biden
Hunter Biden (far right) also joined to watch his father’s last political speech
That’s because he did not simply ‘do a laundry list of his accomplishments’ and instead gave some ‘purpose and some meaning to the moment.’
He defined the ‘fight ahead’ clearly, he went on.
‘I think it’ll be well received that Joe Biden is kind of doing this call to arms, a real clear laying of the gauntlet to his political opposition, but maybe even more importantly, to his political allies and to the American people about what lies ahead.’
‘I think he made news by defining the political battlefield at this moment. I thought he did it excellently, and I think his speech will be well received by folks who maybe weren’t expecting a lot.’