The Democratic National Convention trotted out some of the richest and most powerful people in America to lecture the country about wealth inequality and the dangers of the American culture’s focus on money and status this week.
Millionaires, like former President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle Obama, and even billionaires like Oprah Winfrey and Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, spoke at the convention this week amid themes about income inequality.
“We live in a time of such confusion and rancor, with a culture that puts a premium on things that don’t last: money, fame, status, likes,” former President Obama said on Tuesday night, despite his family having a net worth in the tens of millions of dollars.
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Former U.S. first lady Michelle Obama gestures onstage during Day 2 of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago, Illinois, U.S., August 20, 2024. (REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz)
Here are four mega-rich Democratic leaders who spoke at the DNC in spite of its anti-rich themes.
Oprah laments her own experience with income equality
Oprah Winfrey, one of the richest and most powerful media moguls in history, used a portion of her speech on Wednesday night to rail against “income equality” and other problems that the Democratic Party has vowed to eradicate from America.
“I’ve seen racism, and sexism, and income inequality, and division,” she said, adding, “I’ve not only seen it, at times, I’ve been on the receiving end of it.” Winfrey was raised in extreme poverty by her grandmother in rural Mississippi, and later by a single mom, who Winfrey lived with in a Milwaukee boarding house for years.
Still, Winfrey’s denunciation of income inequality rang hollow to people who pointed out her current enormous net worth, which Forbes estimated is $3 billion.
Conservative radio host Dana Loesch wrote, “Kinda weird for Oprah, with her Hawaiian estate and multiple homes, expensive wardrobes, frequent luxury vacations, etc., to talk about income inequality.”
Michelle Obama touts her parents’ suspicion of wealthy folks
During her speech at the DNC on Tuesday night, Obama praised her parents’ humility, hard work, rejection of wealth, and mistrust of rich people.
Obama said her mother showed her “the meaning of hard work and humility and decency,” adding, “She and my father didn’t aspire to be wealthy. In fact, they were suspicious of folks who took more than they needed. They understood that it wasn’t enough for their kids to thrive if everyone else around us was drowning.”
Obama talked about how those values had been instilled in her, prompting criticism from those pointing out her own massive net worth.
Trump War Room, the official account of former President Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign, shared a clip of Michelle Obama’s speech and commented, “Michelle Obama says her parents ‘were suspicious of folks who took more than they needed.’ She has a net worth of $70 million and lives in a mansion in Martha’s Vineyard.”
Obama decries America’s fixation with ‘money, fame, status, likes’
Following his wife’s speech, former President Obama slammed American culture for “putting a premium” on “money, fame, status, likes.”
In addition to being one of the most famous political figures in modern history and sharing that $70 million net worth with his wife and family, the former president also owns a movie production company along with Mrs. Obama called “Higher Ground Productions,” as well multiple properties in some of the most expensive areas in the country.
He’s also been known for rubbing shoulders with elites in Hollywood and media throughout his political rise and now as a party elder statesman.
Billionaire Illinois governor JB Pritzker boasts of being ‘actual billiionare’ right after Bernie Sanders calls for getting big money out of politics
In another DNC moment this week that raised eyebrows, Pritzker gave a speech in which he touted his own wealth that followed Sen. Bernie Sanders’, I-Vt., own speech slamming billionaires who spend money to influence elections.
During his Tuesday night DNC address, Sanders urged his fellow Democratic Party members to get “big money out of our political process.” He also declared, “Billionaires in both parties should not be able to buy elections – including primary elections.”
Pritzker, a scion of the Pritzker family that owns the Hyatt hotel chain and is currently the wealthiest elected U.S. official with a net worth of $3.4 billion, spent a reported $350 million of his own money to win his gubernatorial races in 2018 and 2022 in Illinois. The blue state hasn’t voted for a Republican presidential candidate since 1988, although it has elected Republican governors and U.S. Senators in that time.
In his address to Democrats, Pritzker boasted about his wealth.
Pritzker told the DNC crowd, “Donald Trump thinks that we should trust him on the economy, because he claims to be very rich. But take it from an actual billionaire – Trump is rich in only one thing: stupidity.”
Fox News Digital’s Danielle Wallace contributed to this report.
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