By Sonali Basak and Katherine Chiglinsky
(Bloomberg) – Warren Buffett, who is supporting Democrat Hillary Clinton for president, said he stands with fellow billionaire Donald Trump, a Republican, in calling for an end to a tax break helping private-equity and hedge-fund managers.
“In terms of tax policy, I haven’t heard him say anything yet that I disagree with,” Buffett said Tuesday in a televised interview with Bloomberg’s David Westin. “He’s going to spell out his economic program some time in the next few weeks. I wouldn’t be surprised if I agree with quite a bit of his economic program.”
Trump has distinguished himself from Republican rivals by criticizing the rule that lets investment managers who get so- called carried interest treat those profits as capital gains, which face lighter taxes than wage income. Buffett has long said the government needs to reduce wealth inequality in the U.S., a position taken by Clinton, who lamented that the nation’s top 25 hedge fund managers earn more than all U.S. kindergarten teachers combined.
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Buffett reiterated support for Clinton, who has come under criticism for her personal e-mail use as secretary of state.
“It hasn’t been handled well, but I’ve handled some things badly in my life too,” Buffett said of the e-mail controversy. “I do not consider that determinative at all of the kind of person she would be as president. I believe that she has a vision for America that’s very similar to mine, in terms of everybody being included in the prosperity we enjoy.”
