Billionaire Hedge Fund Manager Backs Romney, Says Rich Need More Power

Billionaire hedge fund manager Kenneth Griffin is backing Mitt Romney in the 2012 presidential election, and he says that the ultra-wealthy should have more influence over the country.

Griffin is the head of Citadel, one of the biggest hedge funds in the world. His personal net worth is estimated at $2.3 billion.

In an interview with the Chicago Tribune, Griffin explained that he didn’t think the 1% had enough power: “I think (the ultra-wealthy) actually have an insufficient influence, those who have enjoyed the benefits of our system more than ever now owe a duty to protect the system that has created the greatest nation on this planet.”

Griffin has donated $150,000 to Restore Our Future, a pro-Romney Super PAC. He has also donated $560,000 to the Republican Governor’s Association, and in the past has donated thousands to Karl Rove’s American Crossroads, a pro-Republican group that has regularly been caught creating grossly inaccurate advertising.

The Tribune also reports that Griffin has donated $1.5 million to Americans For Prosperity, the shadowy front group operated by billionaires Charles and David Koch. Americans for Prosperity has funded much of the “tea party” movement.

In 2005, Griffin was a backer of credit derivatives — the complex financial instruments that helped to cause much of the economic crisis in 2008. He described derivatives as “an entirely new and vital way of spreading risk.” Billionaire investor Warren Buffet described these same tools as “financial weapons of mass destruction.”

VIA Business Insider