Apple CEO Tim Cook
Apple’s lobbying efforts under CEO Tim Cook has continued throughout the term of President Joe Biden, with executives, lobbyists, and Cook himself visiting the White House 87 times in four years.
As one of the largest companies in the world, Apple has a vested interest in politics, as Big Tech companies continue to feel pressure from the U.S. government. It seems that Apple’s efforts have been fruitful, with it sending many people to the White House.
In public documents seen by the New York Post, Apple’s lobbyists and executives have visited the White House for meetings at least 87 times during Biden’s term. Visitor logs show the meetings have occurred since 2021, with the list including 11 visits by Tim Cook.
Of those visits, Cook met with at least 14 officials, with the disclosures adding that at least three involved President Biden. Cook also participated in at least two of the four state dinners hosted by Biden, including those attended by French President Emmanuel Macron and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The visit count is significant, with report sources believing the figure to be high even for a major business executive.
Apple’s executive involvement in the White House is a continuation of what occurred during the administration of former president Donald Trump. At that time, Cook was considered close to the president, regularly meeting and contacting him about a variety of matters.
Trump even praised Cook for his communications skills, including how the Apple CEO personally called and visited him.
Under the Biden White House, the work to influence policy continued, with Apple spending considerable sums to lobby for what it wants.
According to OpenSecrets, Apple spent $9.9 million on lobbying the federal government in 2023 alone, a record for the company. Up from $9.3 million in 2022 and $6.5 million in 2021, Apple has spent a total of $32.4 million since 2020 on its lobbying efforts.
Despite the increase, Apple’s lobbyist spending is still relatively low compared to other big tech companies, with Meta, Amazon, and Google reportedly spending a lot more.
The increase in political attention from Apple coincides with that of the U.S. government’s interest in the affairs of Big Tech firms, which has involved multiple attempts by lawmakers to crack down on alleged antitrust behavior.
