Warren Buffett got a question on what would happen to the country, the economy, and Berkshire Hathaway if Donald Trump became president, and he mostly sidestepped it.
The question, which came from journalist Andrew Ross Sorkin, was specifically about whether a Trump presidency pose a threat to the business of Berkshire Hathaway (BRK-A). Buffett, who has widely said that he is supporting Hillary Clinton, quipped, “That won’t be the main problem.”
As for Berkshire, Buffett said his insurance conglomerate would do just fine under a Trump presidency, or a Clinton one for that matter. He said Berkshire has operated under a number political climates and made money.
“We’ve operated under price controls, we’ve had 52% federal taxes applied to our earnings… we’ve had regulations come along,” Buffett said says, “I will predict that if either Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton become president Berkshire will do fine.”
Buffett did say that he thought that it is very likely that either Clinton and Trump will be the next president, but Buffett added one more likely one than the other. Still, Buffett implied that he didn’t think any one president, even Trump, could totally derail the U.S. economy. Buffett reiterated what he has said in the past that the economy and country is headed in the right direction and that will continue. Trump supporters were likely expecting some harsh words towards their candidate from Buffett. So the fact that Buffett said Trump won’t be all that bad for the economy could be seen as positive for the Trump camp.
Charlie Munger, Buffett’s long-time No. 2, ducked the question even more than Buffett. “I am afraid to get into this area,” says Munger, a long time Republican. Munger hasn’t said who he is planning on voting for for president.