Tim Cook and Donald Trump at a White House meeting in 2018 — image courtesy of Apple
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Their personal relationship didn't always help “Tim Apple,” but Tim Cook was more successful at cooperating with Trump more than most.
President Trump previously backed the FBI against Apple over what he called foreign apps and famously forgot Cook’s name, but overall Apple appears to have benefited under the Trump administration. The Wall Street Journal reports that this is due to a particular tactic Cook uses, as well as Trump’s personal lobbying.
“That’s why he’s a great leader, because he calls me and nobody else does,” Trump said in 2019.
Cook both calls Trump and has lunch with him. The key to these communications is reportedly that Cook keeps them one point at a time, one topic at a time.
In a 2017 exchange, for example, Cook convinced Trump to scale back his tariff plans by telling him how it would increase iPhone prices and help Samsung. Cook will likely have to do it again — the new administration says it will increase tariffs, though the costs are paid by importers and passed on to US consumers.
Ahead of the new administration, Cook reconnected by congratulating Trump, as virtually every business leader and foreign government has done. However, Cook may have also maintained relations during the Biden administration, as Trump claimed they talked about EU laws.
“Two hours ago, three hours ago, he [Cook] called me,” Trump said on the PBD podcast on October 17, 2024. “He said the European Union just fined us $15 billion… Then, on top of that, the European Union fined them another $2 billion.”
“Tim… I’m not going to let them take advantage of our companies — that, you know, won’t happen anymore,” he says, continuing.
In addition to lobbying in person through calls and dinners, Cook has also worked publicly with Trump. In 2019, he presented the president with the first 2019 Mac Pro made in Austin, Texas, after a factory tour.
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