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Warren
Buffett is an Obama supporter, but he is still bullish on America even
if Trump becomes president. He cited the fact that in his lifetime, GDP
per capita has gone up six times.
Buffet says GDP per capita has gone up 6 times in his life
Some
Americans are so upset about the prospect of a President Donald Trump
that they’re threatening to inundate Canada with a wave of U.S. refugees
come November. But Warren Buffett won’t be one of them.
When asked at the Berkshire Hathaway (BRK-A)
annual meeting if Donald Trump might harm his company's interests if
elected president, the famous CEO said, "this won't be the main
problem," as thousands in attendance guffawed. Then he reflected on the
way his business and many others have survived all manner of regulation,
meddling and turmoil.
“In my
lifetime," Buffett continued, "GDP per capita in real terms has gone up
six for one ... I’m confident that 20 years from now there will be far
more output per capita than there is now. No presidential candidate or
president is going to end that. They can shape it in ways that are good
or bad, but they can't end it."
Buffett
is a Democrat who supports Hillary Clinton for president and opposes
Trump. But Buffett is also famous for taking the long view and
dismissing many of the here-and-gone controversies that dominate social
media and the 24-hour news cycle. Buffett, born in 1930, has lived
through World War II, the Korean War, the Cold War, the Vietnam War,
Nixon’s resignation, the double-digit inflation of the 1970s, the 9/11
terrorist attacks and much more. Not counting the 1930s, Buffett has
lived through 12 recessions.
Trump has proposed policies that some economists think could cause Buffett’s 13th
recession, especially steep tariffs on some imports, which could send
prices soaring. But Buffett surely understands that the political system
has a way of killing the worst ideas, and even if it doesn’t, American
businesses usually innovate their way to success. That’s why he’s a huge
fan of America.
“For 240
years, it's been a terrible mistake to bet against America, and now is
no time to start,” Buffett wrote in his latest annual letter to
shareholders. “America's golden goose of commerce and innovation will
continue to lay more and larger eggs.”
Watch Berkshire Hathaway's annual meeting live, exclusively at Yahoo Finance .
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