Even so, Buffett supported the stimulus. And then there's Soros: Then: http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE50I4XZ20090119 And Now: http://finance.yahoo.com/tech-ticke...Recovery-or-"Tremendous-Drag-on-the-Economy"?
Since Warren has found a new play-pretty, (namely the media), he has become just about as good of a bullshit artist as he is businessman. Why do you even pay any attention to what he says?
Can you imagine what would happen to Buffett fortunes, had George, Paulson, Sheila, etc. decided to let the market work itself out? The yapping puppeteer would have a heart attack instantly. At his age he can't afford it. (literally)
If Buffet losing him memory. Bush lead America from a nation with a budget SURPLUS to a market on verge of collapse. Luckily there is a limit on terms on office. If he it was not to the 8 years, who knows what could have happened. The Market bottom, immediately after Bush left the white house (exactly 6-7 weeks later). Someone should show Buffet a replay of Bush vs. Al Gore debate where Al Gore foresaw what Bush would do to the economy and sighed. The next day it was as if the whole of America was telling Al Gore you were condescending Bush, and that the Economy is not important and that what is important is that Bush is like a guy I can have a beer with. At the time everyone was rich and happy, and the budget was in surplus. All problems started with Bush, and all the great things ended with bush, and all good things came back after he Bush got out. That there are Americans who can still think Bush was good for America is strange. Is Buffet getting too old or does he have some sort of benefit he is after?
Markets naturally expand and contract. A good economics class will teach you that markets naturally expand and contract. The greater the expansion, the greater the collapse. This is not Bush's fault. This is how the economy works. What exactly is the point? Bush didn't start the mortgage crisis (sigh). In 1994, the Clinton administration pushed through some fundamental changes to the Community Reinvestment Act of 1977. The goal of these changes was to make sure that banks were âserving low and moderate income geographiesâ and making sure that these banks âeconomically empowered persons of low and moderate incomeâ. Regulators were then given more power to punish banks that did not comply with the new rules. These changes led directly to the explosion of subprime mortgages and contributed heavily to the mortgage crisis. In 1999, the Clinton administration, at the suggestion of Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan and U.S. Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin, rescinded the Glass-Steagall Act. This act had protected our monetary system since the Great Depression by keeping home loans from being traded as securities. For the high unemployment, who do you blame? Reagan, Bush Sr., Clinton, Bush, Obama or Congress? I don't blame anyone. It is a byproduct of an economy that expands and contracts. Anyone can make that quote about any President. So, this doesn't make a point. You're getting old, too.
Really? You mean the Bush who was handed a structural budget surplus and then proceeded to dismantle it into a structural budget deficit by borrowing to pay for unnecessary tax cuts and one unnecessary war? The guy who was ideologically opposed to regulatory reform during the course of his presidency? The guy who inherited sunshine but bequeathed a storm cloud? That guy? http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/08/01/AR2010080103287.html
buffett would have picked up all the bargains. instead the currency is being destroyed nobody wants to hire because business realizes there are storms coming.
The dollar went from 120 to the 70's on Bush's watch before any of the crisis emerged. Neglect. That is the aftermath of his leadership.
first off all warren bet his company on puts. he could not afford to not have a bailout. 2nd he also was instrumental in funding Goldman. Do I have any doubt he new GS would be saved by the Fed - which GS probably owns. The former GS executives were negotiating the bailout as head of the NY fed. Paulson, and bernanke was roomates in college with GS current leader. The govt bailed out.
+1. Aside from this point, very few people realize that Buffett is just an average investor. He has the luxury of being fully invested at all times. He doesn't have to deal with redemptions, contributions, or idle cash like a traditional money manager does. He simply moves cash from the balance sheet of BRK to buy stock X when it meets his criteria. The cash on the balance sheet of BRK doesn't count toward his performance until it is actually invested. What a HUGE advantage that is. He is a terrific businessman, however. He will go down as the best investor of all time when it should be the best businessman of all time. Whatever the case, his allegiance with politics, past and present, and with Goldman Sachs, has trashed all of his credibility. He is now just another figure of the establishment.