Buffett on investing in NRA-affiliated companies: 'I do not believe in imposing my political opinions on the activities of our businesses'
The Berkshire Hathaway 2018 Annual Shareholders Meeting started off with a high-powered Q&A session Saturday morning with Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger.
Many questions revolved around specific stocks and companies Berkshire Hathaway had invested in, which brought upon the topic of company morals and ethics.
When posed with a question about investing in companies that support controversial organizations such as the NRA, Big Tobacco and other politically-charged entities, Buffett took a very clear stance on his belief that one's personal beliefs do not necessarily need to correlate with that of the company which they represent:
"I don’t think I’m speaking for Berkshire, I’m speaking as a private citizen. [Berkshire Hathaway has] never made a political contribution and I don’t go to our suppliers or do anything of that sort … I do not believe in imposing my political opinions on the activities of our businesses. I think if you get into what businesses are pure and which are not pure, it is very difficult to make that call."
Munger, on the other hand, joked around a very valid point about needing to be open to policies both sides of the political spectrum:
"We just do the best we can and certainly were not going to ban all guns [when we’re] surrounded by wild turkeys in Omaha!"
The Berkshire Hathaway 2018 Annual Shareholders Meeting will conclude at 6 p.m. EST.
