Billionaire philanthropist George Soros argued Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren is the favorite to emerge from the Democratic primary but stopped short of endorsing her.
Soros, 89, who has a history of backing liberal causes and super PACs, praised Warren in an interview with The New York Times that was published Friday.
“She has emerged as the clear-cut person to beat,” Soros stated. “I don’t take a public stance, but I do believe that she is the most qualified to be president.”
The billionaire donor then qualified his remarks, making it clear that his comments were not an explicit endorsement of Warren.
“I’m not endorsing anybody because I want to work with whoever,” he added. “I don’t express my views generally because I have to live with whoever the electorate chooses.”
Soros, who supported President Trump’s China policy last month, reiterated that stance later in the interview while discussing the tiff between China and the NBA, which began when a league general manager tweeted out his support for the protests in Hong Kong.
“I consider Xi Jinping’s China the worst threat to an open society,” he said of China’s president.
“We should recognize it: It’s a different system. It’s totally opposed to ours, diametrically opposed to ours,” Soros added. “I’m not anti-Chinese at all. I’m just anti-Xi Jinping.”
