Shark Tank star Kevin O’Leary sparked a heated response from CNN anchors after claiming Kamala Harris was not the Democratic nominee.
During a fiery panel discussion on Thursday, the investor — who has a net worth of $400 million — drew a parallel between stock selection and the selection process for the Democratic presidential candidate.
In stock selection, fund managers are paid millions to pick stocks they think will succeed. But despite their lofty reputation, they tend to deliver lower returns than those who simply put money into a fund that tracks the stock market.
For his analogy, O’Leary compared these fund managers to the small group of senior Democratic leaders that Harris anointed. At the same time, the broader stock market symbolized the millions of rank-and-file Democrats across the country who would normally select the candidate through primaries.
“In stock selection, 88 percent of managers cannot beat the S&P 500 year in and year out,” O’Leary said. “So if you give them a thousand dollars, the S&P beats them. They can’t pick stocks.’
“This is the second time the Democratic Party has bypassed and elected democracy [a presidential candidate]’ he said.
The investor, who is estimated to have a net worth of about $400 million, made a comparison between the stock selection and the selection of the Democratic presidential candidate during a panel discussion on CNN on Thursday.
The businessman made the analogy during a Harris town hall discussion on CNN, which took place the night before in Pennsylvania.
O’Leary said: ‘Just 90 days ago, Pelosi went to Biden and said ‘you need to step aside’ and convinced him to do so.
“He made the decision and he actually asked her, and now we’ve learned this: ‘Is she the right person to drive this home?’ That’s what he wondered.
“He could have said we had to go through a process for me to take this step, but they decided not to do that. I don’t know who “they” are – was it Obama? Was it Pelosi? I don’t care who it was,” he continued.
Harris accepted the Democratic presidential nomination in August, becoming the first woman of color to become a presidential candidate on a major party ticket.
“On behalf of Americans, like the people I grew up with, people who work hard, pursue their dreams, and care for each other, on behalf of everyone whose story can only be written in the greatest country in the world, I accept your nomination for President of the United States States of America,” Harris said at the time.
O’Leary said this was the “second time the Democratic party has circumvented democracy” – and claimed that Hillary Clinton’s nomination in 2016 was the first time.
This led to a heated debate between the investor and the other panel members.
CNN anchor Abby Phillip quickly responded, saying, “I know you’re from Canada, but the primary process in this country is not in the Constitution.
‘The political parties can choose how they want to choose their candidate. And as long as they meet the legal deadlines in the states where they are voting, they can do so as they please.”
CNN host Abby Phillip and Shark Tank star Kevin O’Leary got into a heated debate on the topic
Shark Tank star Kevin O’Leary stunned CNN hosts by claiming Kamala Harris was not Democratically nominated as presidential candidate
She added that parties can simply hand-pick someone, and they don’t even have to have a primary.
“It’s just nothing,” she said.
O’Leary responded, saying he has “no role in the game other than getting a great president.”
But he added that although he was born in Canada, his children were born and raised in Boston, and all of his investments are in the US.
“I want the president, whoever he is, to be a winner,” O’Leary added.
In response to O’Leary’s comments about Clinton’s nomination, Phillip said Clinton had won a primary.
“Did Kamala Harris win a primary?” O’Leary said in response.
