Loading ...Bobby Kennedy Jr dropping truth bombs:
“Billions of dollars go to Raytheon, General Dynamics, Northrop Grumman, Boeing, and Lockheed. Those companies, which are all owned by BlackRock, control both the Republican and Democratic parties.”
https://twitter.com/CitizenFreePres/status/1781887659406770222
this was on here weeks ago~ on a similar podcast
Excellent — didn’t see it — a message worth repeating anyway……
No, the message is wrong. Blackrock does not own all those companies. For example, Raytheon shares are owned by State Street and Vanguard for about 8% each and the general public has 19%. The company is still publicly owned although its tilted to institutional investors. But the institutions are owners on behalf of pensioners whose money is in their funds. So its incorrect to say Blackrock is owner when actually its more like a broker/custodian on behalf of its funds.
Farmer — isn’t Blackrock allowed to vote the shares that it holds as broker/custodian? He who controls the votes also controls the shares. Kennedy could have included Vanguard in his comment but I perceive that he was trying to make a point — does the fact that shares are held by both Blackrock and Vanguard Corporations matter in the analogy he was making??
I mostly object to the use of the word “own” as it implies something more formal and direct than being a shareholder and custodian. A lot of people keep using the same word lately and are making out that Blackrock is really a lot bigger than it actually is. That is discouraging for the average person who may not get the brushstrokes and ends up thinking these brokers are literally economic superpowers with absolute ownership.
Lets keep in mind Fink himself is an employee just for starters. He does not own anything let alone the chair he sits in his office. His authority is more limited than may be apparent. Yes they vote stock but no they don’t run the companies which is why DEI and ESG and other programs can still fail. Management of those big companies still retain the rights to manage even though they are subject to influence.