QuestionerBerkshire paid $8.9 billion in taxes in 2013. Pfizer is currently contemplating an acquisition that would allow it to move its technical holding company overseas and thereby save income tax expense and create shareholder value. Is this something you and Charlie would ever consider if it would create value for Berkshire shareholders?
WarrenI think the answer to that is no. What do you say, Charlie? I think it would be crazy to be as prosperous as Berkshire. and get our tax to zero while we remain this prosperous. That would not be a legitimate ideal. We could not have done Berkshire in any other country except the United States either. And just look at what we've acquired and everything. America is in a very, very, very big way helped Charlie and I become very, very, very rich. Charlie?
CharlieI've got no complaints and I look around at this group. I see you at breakfast. It's a very happy group of people. I don't think a lot of people. people who are gnashing their teeth that somebody else has a little more. But we don't pay, I don't want to make it holier than on this stuff. We don't, we don't pay anything that, you know, beyond that, when we get all through figuring that tax on our 20,000 page plus return, we just don't, we don't add a tip of 20% or 15% percent or anything. And we do certain transactions which are tax driven. We're in low income housing, housing tax credits, which actually George Bush 41, congratulated me for us, so it's bipartisan. The wind energy deals we do, the solar deals we do, they are tax driven to a, I mean, they won't make economic sense otherwise. So we follow the rules, but we don't begrudge the taxes we pay. We've earned a lot of money while paying U.S. taxes.