One of the world's wealthiest men, George Soros has recently turned his attention and his money towards a cause that hits close to home... the upcoming Presidential election. In a NOW interview with David Brancaccio, Soros critiques the Bush administration's foreign and economic policies, and he discusses his recent support for America Coming Together, a new campaign to defeat the President in 2004 and mobilize voters to elect progressive candidates across America. But these aren't the only topics which inspire passion in George Soros. Learn more about his views on globalism, money, and the future of the world as shared with Brancaccio.

Soros on...

• the USA Patriot Act:
  "You know, you pass the USA Patriot Act without proper discussion. And anybody who opposed it was accused of giving aid and comfort to the terrorists. So I think we've gone off the rail in this country.... I mean, it was done in six weeks. Lawmakers didn't even get a copy of the bill. They couldn't even read it before it was passed."

• America's role in the world:
  "America has to reconsider its role in the world. Because we have very serious, naturally, very serious problems that require international cooperation. And we need to be the leaders of that cooperation. We have to be the leaders of the world gathering support. But that means willingness to abide by the rules that we want to impose on others and the willingness to take into account other people's interests and views. And recognizing that just because we are so powerful, we are not in possession of the ultimate truth, that we don't always get it right."

• globalism:
  "Markets are very good for taking care of private needs. And engaging in free exchange. But they do not take care of our collective needs. And we do have collective needs. And that's what's ignored. I mean, we need to maintain law and order. We need to maintain peace in the world. We need to protect the environment. We need to have some degree of social justice, equality of opportunity. The markets are not designed to take care of those needs. That's a political process. And the market fundamentals have managed to reduce providing those public goods."

• campaign reform:
  "I am not too happy with the campaign reform as it currently stands. You see, I would change rules if I could. I think there ought to be a lot more free time available on television for advertising, so that you wouldn't have to spend the amounts of money that you have to spend now.

  "At the same time, I would actually allow so-called soft money for grassroots organizing. I think it strengthens our democracy if you get people engaged. And the use of the Internet now and things like MoveOn.org and so on helps to engage people..."

George Soros George Soros was born in Budapest, Hungary on August 12, 1930. He survived the Nazi occupation of Budapest and left communist Hungary in 1947 for England, where he graduated from the London School of Economics (LSE). While a student at LSE, Soros became interested in the work of the philosopher Karl Popper, who had a profound influence on his thinking and later on his professional and philanthropic activities. In 1956, Soros moved to the United States, where he began to accumulate a large fortune through an international investment fund he founded and managed. Today he is chairman of Soros Fund Management LLC. Soros has been active as a philanthropist since 1979, when he began providing funds to help black students attend the University of Cape Town in apartheid South Africa. Today he is chairman of the Open Society Institute (OSI) and the founder of a network of philanthropic organizations that are active in more than 50 countries. Based primarily in Central and Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union-but also in Africa, Latin America, Asia, and the United States-these foundations work closely with OSI to develop and implement a range of programs focusing on civil society, education, media, public health, and human rights as well as social, legal, and economic reform. In recent years, OSI and the Soros foundations network have spent a total of about $400 million annually to support projects in these and other focus areas. In 1992, Soros founded Central European University, with its primary campus in Budapest. Soros is the author of many books, including GEORGE SOROS ON GLOBALIZATION (2002); THE ALCHEMY OF FINANCE, 1987; OPENING THE SOVIET SYSTEM, 1990; UNDERWRITING DEMOCRACY, 1991; SOROS ON SOROS: STAYING AHEAD OF THE CURVE, 1995; THE CRISIS OF GLOBAL CAPITALISM: OPEN SOCIETY ENDANGERED, 1998; and OPEN SOCIETY: REFORMING GLOBAL CAPITALISM, 2000. His articles and essays on politics, society, and economics appear regularly in major newspapers and magazines around the world. Soros has received honorary degrees from the New School for Social Research, the University of Oxford, the Budapest University of Economics, and Yale University. In 1995, the University of Bologna awarded Soros its highest honor, the Laurea Honoris Causa, in recognition of his efforts to promote open societies throughout the world. Writings by George Soros Speeches by George Soros Related Stories: Select One Democracy ToolsFreedom of ReligionFreedom of Information Corporate Reform Full Archive Previous Page