OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
Warren Buffett has made it clear that he will not support either Kamala Harris or Donald Trump for president in 2024.
The CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, who is 94 years old and worth about $146.3 billion, has lately backed Democratic candidates.
But a memo from the “Sage of Omaha’s” firm that came out on Wednesday said he wouldn’t be running for office and that any other idea would be “fraudulent.”
After a fake promotion showed up on Instagram, the statement also said that AI could be used to make him look like someone else. The message that says Buffett won’t support any investment goods seems to be an attempt to stop both campaigns from trying to use his fame to their advantage.
“In light of the increased usage of social media, there have been numerous fraudulent claims regarding Mr. Buffett’s endorsement of investment products as well as his endorsement and support of political candidates. Mr. Buffett does not currently and will not prospectively endorse investment products or endorse and support political candidates,” read the company statement.
Buffett told CNBC the statement resulted partially from a fake political endorsement on Meta Platforms’ Instagram social media platform.
“I don’t even know how to get on Instagram,” Buffett told the network. “Anything they see with my image or my voice, it just ain’t me.”
Warren Buffett will not endorse a presidential candidate in 2024 https://t.co/Eg3eckMYsb
— Just the News (@JustTheNews) October 23, 2024
Buffett’s decision not to take a stance comes after billionaire Elon Musk has gone “all in” to help Donald Trump.
Musk has made a huge donation to a political organization aligned with Trump, officially making him a Republican “megadonor.”
Musk gave $75 million to a superPAC he set up over the past three months, according to election-related financial disclosures, Reuters reported.
America PAC, which aims to mobilize voters in closely contested states that could determine the election outcome, spent approximately $72 million during the July-September period, according to disclosures filed with the Federal Election Commission.
This amount surpasses that of any other pro-Trump superPAC focused on voter turnout. The Trump campaign heavily relies on outside groups for voter canvassing, meaning the superPAC founded by Musk—the world’s richest man—plays a significant role in the tightly contested election between Trump and Democrat nominee Vice President Kamala Harris, Reuters noted further.
Musk, the CEO of electric car manufacturer Tesla, was the only donor to the group during that period.
Although Musk has stated that he has voted for Democratic presidential candidates in the past, he has made a notable shift to the right in this election cycle. He endorsed Trump in July and joined him at a rally in Pennsylvania earlier this month, the outlet noted.
On Wednesday, Musk announced in a post on X that he will be “giving a series of talks” across Pennsylvania, just under two weeks after his appearance with Trump in the state.
He mentioned that people only need to sign a petition on his America PAC website to attend his talks, scheduled from “tomorrow night through Monday.”
Last week, Reuters reported, citing a source, that Musk plans to ramp up his campaigning for Trump in Pennsylvania, which is viewed as a critical state for both Trump and his Democratic opponent, Harris, in the race for the White House.
Musk’s contributions to America PAC elevate him to the ranks of Republican mega-donors, a group that also includes banking heir Timothy Mellon and casino billionaire Miriam Adelson. However, Reuters revealed earlier this month that Musk had been secretly funding a conservative political group for years, long before his public support for Trump.
America PAC aims to motivate Americans who support Trump but do not always vote to participate in this election cycle, employing a high-risk, labor-intensive strategy for the Trump campaign, noted Reuters. The group, which began its efforts later than other PACs in the election cycle, has faced challenges with hiring and its contractors. Since July, it has terminated two major contractors hired to canvass neighborhoods.
Additionally, it has struggled to recruit doorknockers in several battleground states, partly because many other canvassing groups had already staffed up by the time America PAC became operational, according to half a dozen sources briefed on the matter, as reported by Reuters.
According to the filings, the group had about $4 million in its funds left over by the end of September.
“Separate filings earlier on Tuesday showed that Miriam Adelson, the casino magnate, donated $95 million to another pro-Trump superPAC, Preserve America PAC, in the same period,” Reuters said.
