Obama Phones Billionaire Namesake of His Tax Plan

(Image Credit: Daniel Acker/Bloomberg/Getty Images)

Press Secretary Jay Carney told reporters on Air Force One that President Obama phoned billionaire Warren Buffett this morning to wish him well.

Buffett was diagnosed with stage 1 prostate cancer and will be treated in the coming months. Buffett told shareholders in his company Tuesday that the condition was not life-threatening.

Obama’s tax plan, the Buffett Rule, failed in a Senate vote this week. The Buffett Rule would have made certain that anyone making over $1 million would be subject to a minimum 30 percent tax. It was inspired by the notion that Buffett’s secretary paid a higher percentage in tax than the billionaire did.