Carl Icahn: Obama "Would Be A Terrible President"

Bloomberg:

Billionaire investor Carl Icahn said Barack Obama would be a ``terrible'' U.S. president whose election would bring higher interest rates and a loss of international confidence in the dollar.

``I don't normally get involved in politics, but this time I am,'' Icahn told an investors conference in New York last night. ``I don't think Obama really understands economics.''

The Illinois senator is the front-runner for the Democratic presidential nomination. Obama has 1,962 delegates, according to an Associated Press tally, putting him 64 delegates shy of the 2,026 needed to clinch the nomination.

``I personally think he would be a terrible president,'' Icahn, 72, said. Obama would probably go on a ``huge spending spree'' that ``the country can't afford right now.''

Read the whole story: Bloomberg

Comments

[stillfresh]

If you want to tank an economy, elect a Republican. Bush's father didn't "get" Econ 101. His son certainly doesn't get it or understand it. The only economics lesson Republicans is the kind tilted to make them rich. The rest of us? Icahn is a selfish mean jerk. Besides, a Republican got us were we are today. How can it get worse?

[edva]

".Obama would probably go on a huge spending spree..." You mean huger than Bush's disasterous economic failure? You're senile.

[Hallucinocynic]

I can see why Icahn, and his ilk, don't believe that Obama would be, from their perspective, a good president.

That makes me feel better.

[MichaelDeane]

Well one one hand we have the corporate raider and scumbag Carl Icahn; on the other we have a guy who helps build companies, who has already left much of his money to charity and who supports Barack Obam in Warren Buffet.

Tough call but I'll go with Buffet.

[bmora]

Wow, this guy explains the McCain and Bush Economic policy to a T. Talk about projection.

[Tropiholic]

grotesque elderly white men shaking in their boots, scared to death that Obama will put an end to their corporate thievery.

[whitey7]

Who cares what some hellbound capitalist pig thinks(if you call that thinking). The problem with the economy is vampires like this sucking all the profits out of the system.

[MicahD]

Gee Carl, I guess with inflation, recession, housing crises, record deficits, failing schools and infrastructure, no good energy plan, the dollar limping; yeah, I guess Obama could really screw all that good stuff up.....OH, I FORGOT, THIS TYPE OF ECONOMY IS WHAT PSYCHOPATHS LIKE YOU FEED OFF.

[JimSAC]

I'll go with Buffett.

[ClydeSloppers]

The whole point of the Obama campaign is to destroy America as we know it. I predict cities in flames across America by the 2nd year of his Presidency should he win.

[Oldbuck]

I would say if you don't have anything worth while to say why not keep your mouth shut. You know for the past twenty years since the good old republican party has been in we have slowly been going down hill now we are on the steep part of the slop and I am not sure anyone can stop but we must try.

[MicahD]

I hope Clyde is being sarcastic. I hope.

[whitey7]

Yes, and he is going to boil all the white people in big pots and eat them!

[MsLiz]

Not the young white women!

[chinacatsunflower]

actually, bushco has pretty much destroyed america as we know it. or haven't you noticed?

[TRocks]

And during his presidency the earth shall crumble, mountains will explode, there will be a drought for 40 years, crops and livestocks and white people will die. The worst is the remaining whites will be stripped from their voting rights again for which they have worked so hard to have. Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson will be Supreme Court Judges. O.J. Simpson will be Secretary of Defense and Michael Jackson will be House Majority leader. The government will ban wearing a flag pin. America will be destroyed as we don't know it.
If you love Hamas vote for Obama!!! Hah!

[Antigone]

Al Sharpton and Jesse would be an improvement over the repugs in case you haven't noticed. The earth shall crumble etc describes Iraq after Bush got there.... Get real...Hamas is not my enemy anyway, I don't live next door to them.

[gakota]

Clyde this is not the America i have known for 50 yrs. Bush has made a mockery of our
constitution, our system of government, our laws, damaged our military, lost the
respect of our allies, rendered the dept of justice to criminal status. And has used
fear and lies to keep this country divided. His actions have been criminal and
you talk about Obama ruining this country...

[Pema]

Obama is flush with cash, he has ran his campaign organization flawlessly.
I say the man has some agenda that Obama might hurt. How did this guy get all his money anyway?

[ylpatriot]

hmm thinking that is a scary thing ...all this money means he has been bought ~!!!!!!!!

[blytzd]

Actually it is the result of over 1,000,000 supporters putting their money where their mouth is and supporting Obama.

[walk0nwalls]

Icahn made his money by promoting a corporate culture of short-term gains over long-term goals by using his money to pressure companies into bad deals hoping to sell them off for profit. He is a leech and plague on the system and represents all that is wrong with American capitalism.

And that is NOT hyperbole.

[DallasNE]

Carl Icahn could use a little reality check. What has happened to the dollar over the last 7 years. Oh, yeah, it has gone for. $.96 for 1 Euro to $158 for 1 Euro. The loss of International confidence in the Dollar has already taken place. Besides, this is playing the same fear card they tried playing on Clinton in 1992. As we now know, they were dead wrong back then and Icahn is likely dead wrong now.

[Xysea]

Is this guy totally stupid? Bush is the spendthrift, not Obama.

Of course, Icahn is probably quaking in his boots that more taxes will be required of him and his ilk. He's seeing the demise of the corporate plutocracy on the horizon.

Of course he's getting into politics. lmao

[Racetracker]

Let me understand: Icahn impliedly believes we can spend more than $150 billion a year on the Iraqi occupation but we can't afford the as-yet undefined or unspecified spending plans of the Democrats. Sounds like he wants more tax cuts for the very wealthy, like himself.

[Chavez08]

Yeah, Obama would be terrible!! Icahn should rightfully blame Bush, Clinton, Reagan for killing Capitalism in the first place. Layoff the guys who are trying to fix this mess.

Deitized "Reverse-Robinhood" investors are one of the reasons Socialism is regaining popularity over the world (Europe, South America, Ukraine)