Oligarchs are more visible than ever. That also makes them more vulnerable | Jan-Werner Müller

In the end, the best bet against oligarchy remains countervailing power

Twenty years ago, someone calling the United States an oligarchy would have been labelled a crazy commie or, at best, cuckoo. Now Biden made it central to his goodbye to the American people - and warned of a tech-industrial complex to boot.

It is a salutary recognition that, especially since the US supreme court started to open the floodgates of dark money in politics, wealthy individuals face few obstacles in purchasing political power. But now oligarchs like Musk put themselves at the center of political campaigns and aspire to govern. That new visibility - evidenced by the tech leaders seated in front of Trump's cabinet at the inauguration - could also make oligarchs more politically vulnerable.

Jan-Werner Muller is a professor of politics at Princeton University.