Warren Buffett Said "You Will Not Hear No Comment" in the Shareholder Meeting

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Apr 29, 2011
Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A, Financial)(BRK.B, Financial) CEO Warren Buffett tells Fox Business "You will not hear no comment" and no topics is off limits at the annual shareholder meeting.


In his first televised interview prior to the Berkshire Hathaway annual shareholder meeting, CEOWarren Buffett spoke with FOX Business Network’s (FBN) Liz Claman about what people can expect from this year’s meeting. Buffett said that he feels “terrific” and has no nerves going into the meeting because he will “answer any question that gets asked.” When asked specifically if questions pertaining to David Sokol and the insider trading scandal will be off limits Buffett said “not at all” and even if “our lawyer gets up and wrestles me to the ground I will still talk.”


On how he feels going into the annual shareholder meeting:


“I feel terrific. I feel like I have split my age two for one. Why be nervous. We can answer any question that gets asked. You will not hear no comment. If our lawyer gets up and wrestles me to the ground I will still talk.”


On whether he will place any limits on questions pertaining to David Sokol:


“No, no not at all. We will put up every question and answer on the internet as fast as we can get them transcribed. We’ve got two court reporters, whether they get up Saturday night or Sunday morning, they’ll get up.”


On how many people he is expecting at this year’s conference:


“It’s hard to tell. We gave about eight or nine thousand more tickets. That may translate to two thousand more people than last year. So 38 to 40. Something like that. The sales at the furniture mart are up 11% the first two days, so I don’t know if that means more passes or if they are just giving them to their friends.”


On whether his businesses have improved since last year:


“It’s month by month gotten better. Almost everything except the ones connected with residential construction. They have not gotten better. In a way that’s good because we have to clean up the inventory of excess housing and the sooner that gets done the better. I think when housing comes back employment will come back faster than people think. Everything I see is that business gets better every month except in residential construction.”


On Wall Street bankers:


“They are making a lot of money. It’s always been a place that per point of IQ and per erg of energy, you will make more money on Wall Street than any place else. Its where the money is.”