The US has a ruling class – and Americans must stand up to it | Bernie Sanders

In the year 2022, three multibillionaires own more wealth than the bottom half of American society - 160 million Americans. This is unsustainable

Let's be clear. The most important economic and political issues facing this country are the extraordinary levels of income and wealth inequality, the rapidly growing concentration of ownership, the long-term decline of the American middle class and the evolution of this country into oligarchy.

We know how important these issues are because our ruling class works overtime to prevent them from being seriously discussed. They are barely mentioned in the halls of Congress, where most members are dependent on the campaign contributions of the wealthy and their Super Pacs. They are not much discussed in the corporate media, in which a handful of conglomerates determine what we see, hear and discuss.

Bernie Sanders is a US senator from Vermont and the chairman of the Senate budget committee