It may feel like 2008 in the financial markets, but it isn’t feeling like the 2008 election year for Obama on Wall Street.
This article covers difficulties fund-raising even with Buffett front and center:
When it comes to business, everyone on Wall Street wants a piece ofWarren E. Buffett. His presidential politics, however, appear to be another matter altogether.
On Friday evening, Mr. Buffett was the host of a fund-raiser forPresident Obama at the Four Seasons restaurant in Manhattan, typically a magnet for the who's who of finance. Democrats had bet that the star power of one of the world's richest men would draw an overflow crowd of Wall Street's elite for an affair that ran $10,000 a plate, or $35,800 for one-on-one time with Mr. Buffett.
Yet organizers had trouble drawing the biggest guns of finance. The president's campaign reserved space for 130 guests but only 116 (including Democratic staff members) attended, according to people with knowledge of the matter but not authorized to speak on the record. And there were few marquee names on the guest list. James Chanos, the hedge fund executive, was among the better known of those who attended.
The event - which included on the menu some of Mr. Buffett's favorites, like Cherry Coke and Dairy Queen ice cream - was considered a sell-out success by the Obama campaign. It easily raised more than $1.5 million for the campaign and the Democratic National Committee.
Still, the turnout, strong but less than overwhelming, reflected the president's broader struggles in attracting big-name support from those on Wall Street, whom he referred to as "fat cat bankers" in 2009. One person who attended described the atmosphere as subdued and said the event seemed to attract more Buffett followers than Obama supporters.
Mr. Buffett, a major investor in many of the nation's biggest banks, remains undeterred. As others in business have moved to distance themselves from Mr. Obama, Mr. Buffett has found himself in a lonely role as the president's ambassador among the moneyed set. He is endorsing not just Mr. Obama but also a policy like the so-called Buffett rule, which would increase taxes on the rich, as well as the view that America is exiting, not re-entering, a recession.
"I have always had people disagree with me on politics," Mr. Buffett said in an interview. "You can go through life and just basically opt out of that field. I don't blame anyone particularly, but I don't want to do that. If I have views I will talk about them."
Mr. Buffett's more public embrace of Mr. Obama has cast a spotlight on this unlikely alliance between the Omaha-born son of a stockbroker turned Republican congressman and Mr. Obama, the Harvard-educated lawyer who forged his political career in Chicago.
Mr. Buffett said he first met Mr. Obama roughly six years ago, at a lunch arranged by the billionaire's daughter, Susie. The pair broke bread at Kiewit Plaza in Omaha, where Mr. Buffett's company, Berkshire Hathaway, is situated. At the time, Mr. Obama was only months into his freshman term in the Senate.
Mr. Buffett spotted a rising star, prophetically telling The Chicago Tribune in 2005 that Mr. Obama "has as much potential as anyone I've seen to have an important impact over his lifetime on the course that America takes."
Another presidential hopeful, Hillary Rodham Clinton, also impressed Mr. Buffett. "I didn't think both of them would run," he recalled in the interview with The New York Times. During the contentious 2008 campaign, he lent his name - and wallet - to both candidates. In 2007, he headlined an event for Ms. Clinton in New York and another for Mr. Obama in Omaha.
As president, Mr. Obama has been known to tap Mr. Buffett for advice on the economy. In July 2010, during a meeting at the White House, Mr. Buffett even got a new tie. Mr. Buffett said he wore a tie that "looked like it had gone through a lawn mower." Mr. Obama, noticing its condition, gave Mr. Buffett a new tie, replete with presidential seals.
A few weeks later, Mr. Buffett was back at the White House for a meeting that was also attended byBill Gates, the chairman of Microsoft and an old friend of Mr. Buffett. Mr. Obama was quick to compliment Mr. Buffett, saying he was "looking sharper," according to Mr. Buffett. Mr. Buffett laughed and pointed to Mr. Gates, who was wearing the old tie. Mr. Obama went and got a new tie with presidential seals on it for Mr. Gates. "This tie is very useful," Mr. Buffett said of the frayed tie he now keeps in reserve in his closet for friends who may be visiting the White House.
Link to entire article: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Others-Go-but-Buffett-Stays-nytimes-2944802199.html?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=4&asset=&ccode=
This article covers difficulties fund-raising even with Buffett front and center:
When it comes to business, everyone on Wall Street wants a piece ofWarren E. Buffett. His presidential politics, however, appear to be another matter altogether.
On Friday evening, Mr. Buffett was the host of a fund-raiser forPresident Obama at the Four Seasons restaurant in Manhattan, typically a magnet for the who's who of finance. Democrats had bet that the star power of one of the world's richest men would draw an overflow crowd of Wall Street's elite for an affair that ran $10,000 a plate, or $35,800 for one-on-one time with Mr. Buffett.
Yet organizers had trouble drawing the biggest guns of finance. The president's campaign reserved space for 130 guests but only 116 (including Democratic staff members) attended, according to people with knowledge of the matter but not authorized to speak on the record. And there were few marquee names on the guest list. James Chanos, the hedge fund executive, was among the better known of those who attended.
The event - which included on the menu some of Mr. Buffett's favorites, like Cherry Coke and Dairy Queen ice cream - was considered a sell-out success by the Obama campaign. It easily raised more than $1.5 million for the campaign and the Democratic National Committee.
Still, the turnout, strong but less than overwhelming, reflected the president's broader struggles in attracting big-name support from those on Wall Street, whom he referred to as "fat cat bankers" in 2009. One person who attended described the atmosphere as subdued and said the event seemed to attract more Buffett followers than Obama supporters.
Mr. Buffett, a major investor in many of the nation's biggest banks, remains undeterred. As others in business have moved to distance themselves from Mr. Obama, Mr. Buffett has found himself in a lonely role as the president's ambassador among the moneyed set. He is endorsing not just Mr. Obama but also a policy like the so-called Buffett rule, which would increase taxes on the rich, as well as the view that America is exiting, not re-entering, a recession.
"I have always had people disagree with me on politics," Mr. Buffett said in an interview. "You can go through life and just basically opt out of that field. I don't blame anyone particularly, but I don't want to do that. If I have views I will talk about them."
Mr. Buffett's more public embrace of Mr. Obama has cast a spotlight on this unlikely alliance between the Omaha-born son of a stockbroker turned Republican congressman and Mr. Obama, the Harvard-educated lawyer who forged his political career in Chicago.
Mr. Buffett said he first met Mr. Obama roughly six years ago, at a lunch arranged by the billionaire's daughter, Susie. The pair broke bread at Kiewit Plaza in Omaha, where Mr. Buffett's company, Berkshire Hathaway, is situated. At the time, Mr. Obama was only months into his freshman term in the Senate.
Mr. Buffett spotted a rising star, prophetically telling The Chicago Tribune in 2005 that Mr. Obama "has as much potential as anyone I've seen to have an important impact over his lifetime on the course that America takes."
Another presidential hopeful, Hillary Rodham Clinton, also impressed Mr. Buffett. "I didn't think both of them would run," he recalled in the interview with The New York Times. During the contentious 2008 campaign, he lent his name - and wallet - to both candidates. In 2007, he headlined an event for Ms. Clinton in New York and another for Mr. Obama in Omaha.
As president, Mr. Obama has been known to tap Mr. Buffett for advice on the economy. In July 2010, during a meeting at the White House, Mr. Buffett even got a new tie. Mr. Buffett said he wore a tie that "looked like it had gone through a lawn mower." Mr. Obama, noticing its condition, gave Mr. Buffett a new tie, replete with presidential seals.
A few weeks later, Mr. Buffett was back at the White House for a meeting that was also attended byBill Gates, the chairman of Microsoft and an old friend of Mr. Buffett. Mr. Obama was quick to compliment Mr. Buffett, saying he was "looking sharper," according to Mr. Buffett. Mr. Buffett laughed and pointed to Mr. Gates, who was wearing the old tie. Mr. Obama went and got a new tie with presidential seals on it for Mr. Gates. "This tie is very useful," Mr. Buffett said of the frayed tie he now keeps in reserve in his closet for friends who may be visiting the White House.
Link to entire article: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Others-Go-but-Buffett-Stays-nytimes-2944802199.html?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=4&asset=&ccode=
