The Wall Street Journal doesn't say where the idea came from for its article today on the news that the SEC is "examining" the disclosures made by Warren Buffett-led Berkshire Hathaway in connection with buying the rest of the Burlington, Northern, and Santa Fe Railroad. But it certainly crossed my mind that the SEC was ticked off at Mr. Buffett for defending Goldman Sachs over the weekend at the Berkshire annual meeting, and retaliated by leaking the news of this investigation to the Journal. Or maybe it's just a coincidence that, while the SEC has been looking at Berkshire "for a number of weeks," the news just surfaced publicly today.
At a certain point you wonder how many of these sorts of situations Mr. Buffett can weather while still maintaining his Main Street grandfatherly image.