Apple CEO Tim Cook strongly defends tax policy at Senate hearing

Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook strongly defended the company's tax practices at a Senate hearing highlighting the technology giant's use of Irish subsidiaries to shelter billions of dollars in income from U.S. taxes.

"We pay all the taxes we owe — every single dollar," Cook told the Senate's Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations. "We not only comply with the laws but we comply with the spirit of the laws," he said. "We don't depend on tax gimmicks." Cook said the tax code "has not kept up with the digital age" and restricts the free movement of capital in comparison to the codes of other countries. He called for a "dramatic simplification of the corporate tax code," including lower tax rates and a "reasonable tax on foreign earnings." He said Apple was "deeply committed to our country's welfare." "Apple executives want the public to focus on the U.S. taxes the company has paid, but the real issue is the billions in taxes it has not paid, thanks to offshore tax strategies whose purpose is tax avoidance, pure and simple," said Subcommittee Chairman Carl Levin (D-MI). Chairman Levin said Apple "is exploiting an absurdity" that allows three of its subsidiaries in Ireland to claim they have no responsibility to pay taxes to any country.