Robert Kiyosaki, investor and bestselling author of Rich Dad Poor Dad, shares his views on education, finances, investing and the current political climate.
Robert Kiyosaki is a businessman, investor and best-selling author whose book, Rich Dad, Poor Dad, has sold more than 32 million copies and spawned a chain of seminars that emphasize improving financial literacy, investing in assets and building wealth.
He also maintains close ties with former President Donald Trump, having stressed the importance of fathers teaching their children successful money management strategies from an early age in a book he co-authored with Trump in 2006, “Why We Want You to Be Rich: Two Guys, One Message.”
Kiyosaki spoke to Fox Business at FreedomFest in Las Vegas about his views on the American education system, financial literacy, and the current political climate as the 2024 election gets into full swing.
“The theme was the same, we both had rich fathers. My dad had a rich dad, his dad had his dad, Fred Trump. So we both agreed that it’s important for fathers to mentor their sons and daughters. So when I met Donald, you know Don Jr. and Eric Trump and their daughter, they had really great kids compared to Joe Biden’s son.”
Donald Trump and Robert Kiyosaki attend the New York City Press launch of “Why We Want You to Be Rich: Two Men, One Message by Donald Trump and Robert Kiyosaki” at Trump Tower in New York City on October 12, 2006. (Photo by Matt Carasella/Patrick McM)
Robert Kiyosaki: It’s a tale of two Americas
At the core of Kiyosaki’s philosophy is the responsible use of debt to build wealth and purchase assets. He believes that lack of financial literacy is a major problem in modern society and encourages Americans to learn the language of money.
“You know, Rich Dad Poor Dad was about financial literacy. The definition of the words is very simple. If I go to Japan, I’d better learn to speak Japanese. And if I talk about capitalism, we need to talk about money. We need to know the definition. The biggest mistake people make is calling a house an asset when it’s actually a liability. It’s a literacy issue. The definition of an asset is something that puts money in your pocket whether you’re working or not, and a liability is something that takes money out of your pocket forever,” he said.
Rich Dad co-founder Robert Kiyosaki has warned about which global bank could be the next to fail. (FOX Business/Fox News)
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So people borrow money to buy houses, cars, and other debts, and they get more and more in debt. I like debt, but I use it to buy assets. Let’s say I buy an apartment. The apartment amortizes my debt, so I’m wealthy and I don’t pay taxes, because the government wants us to borrow money. If you borrow money, you don’t pay taxes. But if you work for money, you pay taxes.
A welder works at the joint of two pipe sections during construction of the Gulf Coast Project pipeline in Prague, Oklahoma, U.S., Monday, March 11, 2013. The Gulf Coast Project is a 485-mile crude oil pipeline being constructed by TransCanada C. (Getty Images/Getty Images)
As for the persistent inflation the US is currently grappling with, Kiyosaki, who owns oil fields in Louisiana, North Dakota and Texas, said the roots of the inflation can be traced back to Biden’s shutdown of the Keystone Pipeline.
“When Biden cut off the Keystone Pipeline, under the Trump administration, crude oil was selling for $30 a barrel. The moment he cut the pipeline, the price of crude oil jumped from $30 to $130. We knew exactly what Biden was trying to do. He is trying to create inflation because everything runs on oil. Prices of food and other things will rise and America will be divided in two. One will be rich and the other poor,” he said.
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