Billionaires aren't the enemy. That's far too simplistic.
But the difference between the billionaires and the "unwashed masses" is that the latter hold far less power. Even if you don't have any influence to begin with, if you have enough money you can buy influence and thus power -- if you have enough money, you don't even need to spend it to exert influence as the mere threat of using that money (or simply moving it elsewhere) can be enough.
The wealthy do however routinely use the poor as scapegoats to distract the ire of the not-quite-as-poor. Especially when it comes to immigration, social welfare and other social issues.
The rich are not a marginalised and victimised minority. They're the very opposite of marginalised. Because they control the economy, they can influence politics directly whereas the poor have to trust the promise that their individual voice might sway politics one way or another as long as enough of them share their personal opinions.
EDIT: Point is, unlike what Ayn Rand would have you believe, billionaires are no different from those less fortunate and "their" wealth is not their just reward but the direct result of extracting value from society, leaving everyone else less poor. Jeff Bezos isn't an evil mastermind, he's just a selfish man who through a mix of luck and ruthlessness managed to get away with amassing a fortune out of mostly other people's efforts.
But the difference between the billionaires and the "unwashed masses" is that the latter hold far less power. Even if you don't have any influence to begin with, if you have enough money you can buy influence and thus power -- if you have enough money, you don't even need to spend it to exert influence as the mere threat of using that money (or simply moving it elsewhere) can be enough.
The wealthy do however routinely use the poor as scapegoats to distract the ire of the not-quite-as-poor. Especially when it comes to immigration, social welfare and other social issues.
The rich are not a marginalised and victimised minority. They're the very opposite of marginalised. Because they control the economy, they can influence politics directly whereas the poor have to trust the promise that their individual voice might sway politics one way or another as long as enough of them share their personal opinions.
EDIT: Point is, unlike what Ayn Rand would have you believe, billionaires are no different from those less fortunate and "their" wealth is not their just reward but the direct result of extracting value from society, leaving everyone else less poor. Jeff Bezos isn't an evil mastermind, he's just a selfish man who through a mix of luck and ruthlessness managed to get away with amassing a fortune out of mostly other people's efforts.