Schwarzenegger Enlists Buffett To Supply Financial Muscle
Arnold Schwarzenegger , whose surprise bid to succeed California Gov. Gray Davis turned the state's recall campaign on its ear, shook the race up further by naming financial oracle Warren Buffett as his senior economic adviser.
Mr. Buffet, chairman of Berkshire-Hathaway Inc. and a Wall Street legend for his investment prowess, could give the Schwarzenegger campaign, which has been criticized for being short on policy specifics, a credibility boost with voters and financial markets worried about the state's precarious finances. Aides said other advisers would be named soon as the actor and moderate Republican political activist continues to assemble a campaign team.
Mr. Buffett is often identified with Democratic causes, however, and his campaign role may raise more questions than it answers for California Republicans. He has been a critic of GOP fiscal policy, denouncing President Bush's dividend tax cut and leading the charge against favorable tax treatment for stock options. Though he has supported Republican candidates in his home state of Nebraska, he has contributed to the campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York and the presidential bid of Florida Sen. Bob Graham, both Democrats.
Mr. Schwarzenegger signed up Mr. Buffett, a longtime friend, after a round of personal wooing in recent days, two people close to the Schwarzenegger campaign said.
Mr. Schwarzenegger, calling Mr. Buffett "the greatest investor ever, my mentor, and my hero," said he was "truly honored that Warren has agreed to serve as my top financial and economic advisor. He is truly a giant in the world of finance, and he will be a huge help to me as we work to strengthen California's economy."
Mr. Buffett returned the compliments in a written statement: "I have known Arnold for years and know he'll be a great governor. It is critical to the rest of the nation that California's economic crisis be solved, and I think Arnold will get that job done."
Mr. Schwarzenegger and Mr. Buffett both frequent Sun Valley, Idaho, a ski resort popular with the wealthy from the West and Midwest. Mr. Schwarzenegger and Mr. Buffett traveled together to England last year, and in his financial disclosure filing for the gubernatorial campaign Mr. Schwarzenegger reported that Mr. Buffett gave him a $75 coffee-table book.
NetJets, a fractional ownership corporate-jet company owned by Berkshire, supplies transportation to Mr. Schwarzenegger.
"If Warren Buffett thinks Arnold Schwarzenegger has the chops to run the world's sixth-largest economy, I would take that as quite an endorsement," said political analyst Bill Whalen of Stanford University's Hoover Institution. Mr. Whalen said Mr. Buffett's backing could help give Mr. Schwarzenegger credibility in managing California's relationship with Wall Street, which it needs to manage its huge debts.
Charles Emrich, head of municipal credit research at Legg Mason in Baltimore, agreed. He noted, though that investors may move cautiously, since the appointment would only have a real impact if Mr. Schwarzenegger can win the election and then navigate an agenda of structural budget change through a potentially hostile Democratic state legislature.
The state has been roiled by financial troubles tied to the economic downturn and the recent state energy crisis, factors fueling the effort to recall Mr. Davis. Standard & Poor's Corp. has downgraded California bonds to a triple-B rating, the worst in the nation and two notches above junk-bond status.
Yields on California 10-year uninsured bonds were trading about 0.65 percentage point above the high-grade municipal index, according to Legg Mason. That is roughly unchanged from Tuesday's trading, but 0.05 percentage point tighter than the 0.70 point spread from Friday and the 0.85 point spread at the peak of the budget crisis earlier this summer.
沃伦?巴菲特将出任施瓦辛格的财务顾问
加州州长共和党竞选人、影星阿诺?施瓦辛格(Arnold Schwarzenegger)已签约投资界传奇人物沃伦?巴菲特(Warren Buffett)出任他的经济顾问。
据两位施瓦辛格竞选活动的知情人士透露，在经过近来一轮人事筛选之后，施瓦辛格选择了他的老友巴菲特担任他的经济顾问。
施瓦辛格的发言人称，"巴菲特的工作是召集其他著名商界领袖和经济学家，成立一只团队解决加州面临的问题。"
亿万富翁巴菲特是Berkshire Hathaway Inc.的首席执行长。巴菲特在一份准备好的声明中说，"我与阿诺相识多年，他将会成为一位了不起的州长。"巴菲特说，"加州经济危机的解决对全美其他各州至关重要，我认为阿诺能够胜任这一工作。"
巴菲特的支持对于动作片明星施瓦辛格的可信度可能会是一个巨大的推动。迄今为止，施瓦辛格尚未担任过多少职位，而他治理加州的能力也一直受到公众的嘲笑。
斯坦福大学(Stanford University) 胡佛研究所(Hoover Institution)政治分析师Bill Whalen说，如果巴菲特认为阿诺?施瓦辛格有管理加州这一世界第6大经济体的才能，我认为这对施瓦辛格是一个极大的肯定。"
人们经常将巴菲特与民主党人联系在一起－他捐助参议员希拉里(Hillary Rodham Clinton)竞选 但是他政治立场被视作中立。
