Apple CEO Tim Cook's Trip To Washington Is The First Test Of Techhostile House GOP

Top FOX Business Briefs for December 1st

SEE YOU AGAIN

Apple CEO Tim Cook met with several Republican Party leaders in Washington this week, becoming the first major tech leader to take on the challenge of an anti-tech Republican house.

The silent meeting will be the first indication of how lawmakers intend to handle the tech giant. The focus is on Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio, who will chair the House Judiciary Committee and oversee critical antitrust debates on Apple and Amazon's app stores, among other matters.

Cook's communications objectives were further complicated after Twitter CEO Elon Musk said Apple threatened to remove the platform from the App Store earlier this week, a move Republicans and many Democrats would devour.

Musk confirmed on Twitter late Wednesday that things were back to normal, but shared a video from Apple's California headquarters.

"Thank you Tim Cook for showing the beautiful Apple headquarters," he wrote. "Great conversation. Among other things, we cleared up some confusion about Twitter's removal from the App Store. The team made it clear that Apple had never thought about it.

APPLE SAY

© REUTERS/Brendan McDermid Apple CEO Tim Cook speaks at the Never Now Summit Anti-Defamation League in New York, New York, U.S., December 3, 2018. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid REUTERS/Brendan McDermid

READ ON THE FOX BUSINESS APP

The news was a heavy blow for Cook, and Jordan acknowledged it was "good news" that Twitter would stay in the market during an appearance with Sean Hannity on Tuesday's Fox News.

Cook will no doubt face questions about the matter during his meeting with Jordan this week, as the court has played a prominent role in the antitrust case involving the App Store and Jordan is one of the country's most vocal lawmakers when it comes to the UK. . Tech bias against conservatives.

USERS CELEBRATE ELON MUSK'S TWITTER REVIEW 'MEDIA VOTION': 'THE NEW TWITTER ROCKS'

Rep. Cathy McMorris Rogers, D-Wash., to chair the House Energy and Commerce Committee, is also scheduled to meet with Doll. Your committee also plays an important role in overseeing technology.

Other Republicans already wanted to follow Cook and Apple earlier this week, before Musk announced reforms.

"That's why we need to end the App Store duopoly by the end of this year," said Representative Ken Buck, R-Col. "No one should have that kind of bargaining power."

© Graeme Jennings/Reuters via Reuters Congressman Jim Jordan (R-OH) addresses the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Antitrust, Commercial, and Administrative Law during the "Online Platforms and Market Forces" session at the Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill in Washington. , DC July 29, 2020 Graham Jennings/Poole via REUTERS

Also earlier this week, Florida Republican Governor Ron DeSantis asked Congress to take action against Apple if it removes Twitter from the App Store.

Still, Cook is no stranger to being the first tech leader to fill a critical GOP void. The company took a similar step in 2016 when former President Donald Trump criticized Apple for shipping its products overseas.

FACEBOOK META DOWFALL STOCK BENEFITS

Cook flew to Washington to meet in person with Trump to make amends and maintain his relationship through Trump's presidency.

Trump later said of Cook in 2019, “That's why he's such a great leader. "Because he called me and the others didn't."

©Getty Images | Istock Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said Tuesday that the company is taking responsibility for preparing to lay off employees. Getty Images | Source

But it's unclear whether Cook's charisma will be enough to win over House Republicans, and antitrust issues are just one aspect of the GOP's hostility to its industry. The party has also focused on censorship and bias against conservative views for years.

Jordan and 34 of his fellow Republicans have sent a letter to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg warning about the ongoing investigation into how Facebook handled data that could harm President Biden's 2020 campaign, particularly the Hunter Biden laptop.

The letter was a coup in the view of Meta, who said he should have expected more from the letter when Jordan and other Republican leaders won the presidential election in January and secured appropriate subpoena powers.

Exclusive: Apple CEO Tim Cook talks about the coronavirus and working with Trump