If the CEO of Apple went to Washington and told Obama ” you need to tax my investors more” and you owned Apple stock, what would you do? Basically, that’s what Warren Buffet has done to his shareholders.
Shareholders of his company are in for the long haul for the most part. Very little churn. If you pay $119,375 a share you have a lot of money. You’re not buying penny stocks. Buffet tells you every year, he’s investing for the long term. You follow the Sage of Omaha’s advice, right? You get return on your investment from dividends and capital gains. Buffet just insisted Obama raise those from 15% to 25% and 39% respectively. Buffet just cut your pay. Plus, his performance hasn’t been that great the past two years.
It’s the most egregious insult I’ve witnessed since the AARP sold their members out for ObamaCare and the insurance profits they will get in return. But, Buffet gets nothing in return. Just the opportunity to put it to his investors. Nice.
Of course, it won’t come to pass. First, it’s not a budget proposal from Obama, just a campaign platform. Second, it’s just another miscue from Obama. Wall Street and Main Street aren’t that far apart when it comes to equities. A majority of Americans own stock in one form or another. Pension plans, IRA’s, 401K’s, and insurance policies. Obama is using Buffet as the theme for sticking it to most Americans. But, it’s easier to send a message to Buffet, just as millions did to the AARP, just dump his stock. It’s harder to send the message to Obama.
With help from your friends and neighbors we can dump him in November.