Share

WATCH: Buffett rips Trump on tax returns and bankruptcies

Washington - Billionaire investor Warren Buffett ripped into Republican Donald Trump on Monday over his refusal to release tax returns, his business bankruptcies and his attack on a fallen soldier’s family, repeating a famous phrase from the McCarthy era, “have you no sense of decency, sir.”

Buffett, campaigning on behalf of Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton, challenged Trump to meet him “any place, any time” with a copy of his tax returns. Buffett said he would bring his returns and the two of them would answer questions from the public. He dismissed Trump’s contention that he couldn’t release them because he’s being audited. Buffett said his return is being examined by the Internal Revenue Service(IRS) as well.

“You’re only afraid if you’ve got something to be afraid about,” Buffett told a cheering crowd in Omaha. “He’s not afraid because of the IRS, he’s afraid because of you.”

The 85-year-old Buffett, known as the Oracle of Omaha, criticised Trump’s record as a businessman and said the “final straw” was the Republican presidential candidate’s swipe at the heartbroken parents of a Muslim-American war hero killed in Iraq, which has sparked condemnation across party lines.

Question of sacrifice

Responding to a speech at the Democratic convention last week by Khizr Khan, who spoke about the death of his son, Army Captain Humayun Khan, while serving in Iraq in 2004, Trump said he had “sacrificed” for the US by employing “thousands and thousands of people”.

Buffett said he and Trump have done very well and “we haven’t sacrificed anything”.

Clinton is campaigning in solidly Republican Nebraska with Buffett’s help to burnish her credentials with the business community and to try to make the most of the state’s unusual method of apportioning its five Electoral College votes.

The Berkshire Hathaway chairperson and CEO introduced Clinton at a Monday evening rally in Omaha that’s focused on the Democratic nominee’s economic plans. Clinton is seeking to showcase her support from prominent business leaders as she makes a play for the votes of independents and Republicans who are uncomfortable with the prospect of Trump in the White House.

Buffett’s fellow billionaire, entrepreneur Mark Cuban, endorsed Clinton at a rally on Saturday in Pittsburgh.

WATCH: Buffett rips Trump

Clinton’s plans

In introducing her, Buffett said he was eager to share “what Hillary can and will do in the eight years” after inauguration day in January 2017.

Clinton ran through the outlines of her economic platform, including more spending on the nation’s infrastructure, accelerated development of renewable energy sources and raising taxes on the wealthiest Americans while cutting rates for those in the middle class.

She pledged to support the kind of small businesses “that Donald Trump has consistently stiffed” and said that “you don’t go around bullying small businesses just because you can”. Clinton also questioned Trump’s assertion that he alone can fix the country’s problems. "I grew up in the Midwest" as the daughter of a small businessman, Clinton told the crowd, saying she learnt an ethic of "we’ll fix it together" that Nebraskans also embrace.

WATCH: Donald Trump just posted a Pinocchio spoof on Twitter of who he calls 'crooked Hillary' 

Clinton  vs Trump goes state-to-state

She acknowledged that some parts of US society haven’t felt the benefits of the recovery. “Too many people haven’t gotten a raise since the great crash” of 2008, she said. “There’s too much inequality and too little opportunity." The super-rich and Wall Street will start “paying their fair share”, she said.

As Clinton and Trump head into the general election, their campaigns are moving into a state-by-state contest to collect the 270 electoral votes needed to win the presidency. Nebraska is one of two states, along with Maine, to determine the apportioning of its electoral votes by congressional district as well as statewide. The rest of the states and Washington DC are winner-take-all.

President Barack Obama is the only candidate to have managed a split of a state’s electoral vote when he narrowly won Nebraska’s 2nd Congressional District over Republican John McCain in 2008. He wasn’t able to repeat the feat in 2012. The district, which encompasses Omaha, is represented by a Democrat, Brad Ashford.

Buffett boosts Clinton

Buffett vowed he would campaign relentlessly for Clinton to make sure she carries the district with a record turnout, saying he’s reserved a trolley to get people to the polls on election day. Clinton said that if he succeeds, and she wins, “Warren and I will dance in the streets of Omaha together. Maybe if we’re really lucky he’ll wear his Elvis costume again.”

Buffett, who’s been an Obama backer, promoted Clinton last December during her primary fight against Bernie Sanders, saying in an event in Omaha that he and Clinton share a commitment to helping the less affluent. Buffett spoke about how incomes for the wealthiest increased seven-fold over the past two decades in the US as their tax rates fell.

WATCH: Hillary Clinton posted this video about Trump's chances as commander-in-chief

The Buffett Rule

Buffett was the inspiration for the so-called Buffett Rule, proposed by Obama and backed by Clinton, which would tax incomes exceeding $1m at a minimum rate of 30%. Clinton, a former secretary of state and US senator, has also pledged not to raise taxes on families making less than $250 000 a year.

Buffett, an outspoken critic of the unlimited spending in politics that was set in motion by the Supreme Court’s 2010 Citizens United decision, has helped Clinton raise money but has yet to make a major financial contribution to her presidential campaign. Early in the election season, he donated $25 000 to a political action committee that helped lay the groundwork for Clinton’s run for the nomination and he contributed the $2 700 maximum to her primary campaign in April 2015. Last year he also gave about $50 000 to the Democratic National Committee.

Another prominent billionaire, former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, also backed Clinton, endorsing her on stage at the Democratic National Convention.

Bloomberg is the founder and majority owner of Bloomberg, the parent company of Bloomberg News. He was elected New York mayor as a Republican in 2001 and 2005, and to a third term as an independent. Bloomberg was a member of the Democratic Party before 2001.

Read Fin24's top stories trending on Twitter:

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Rand - Dollar
18.87
+0.3%
Rand - Pound
23.85
+0.2%
Rand - Euro
20.38
+0.3%
Rand - Aus dollar
12.32
+0.2%
Rand - Yen
0.12
+0.3%
Platinum
908.05
0.0%
Palladium
1,014.94
0.0%
Gold
2,232.75
-0.0%
Silver
24.95
-0.1%
Brent Crude
87.00
+1.8%
Top 40
68,346
0.0%
All Share
74,536
0.0%
Resource 10
57,251
0.0%
Industrial 25
103,936
0.0%
Financial 15
16,502
0.0%
All JSE data delayed by at least 15 minutes Iress logo
Company Snapshot
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE
Government tenders

Find public sector tender opportunities in South Africa here.

Government tenders
This portal provides access to information on all tenders made by all public sector organisations in all spheres of government.
Browse tenders