- Apple CEO Tim Cook is opening up about his relationship with President Trump
- Cook is reiterating Apple's commitment to US manufacturing
- We finally know if Cook plans to stay or go in the near term
Apple CEO Tim Cook is finally opening up about his relationship with the Trump White House, and about his future — and his responses are likely to cheer some and frustrate others.
Cook, who's been with Apple for 28 years and has been CEO for 15 years, has been opening up in a series of interviews to mark the occasion of Apple's 50th Anniversary.
Cook is not really the navel-gazing type, and neither is Apple as a whole, a point Cook reiterated to me when I spoke to him at the first in-person 50th Anniversary celebration at New York City's Grand Central Station.
But now Cook is being pressed in interviews about the past, present, and some controversial topics, including his dealings with the Trump Administration, tariffs, and whether or not Cook plans to step down as CEO (and possibly install Apple Hardware Lead John Ternus).
In a chat with Good Morning America's Michael Strahan, Cook did his best to explain his sometimes seemingly chummy relationship with President Donald Trump, who famously once called Cook "Tim Apple".
Cook attended the Trump inauguration last year and, in August, famously presented Trump with a 24-karat-gold and glass trophy to commemorate the launch of Apple's American Manufacturing Program. It featured the Apple logo in glass, Trump's name, and Cook's signature.
More recently, Cook attended the Melania Documentary screening at the White House on the same day that US Border Patrol Agents shot and killed protester Alex Peretti.
Strahan pressed Cook about that apparent closeness with the administration and the criticism Cook received over it. Without addressing that criticism directly, Cook explained his approach to the Trump White House.
"What I do is I interact on policy, not politics. I'm not a political person on either side. I'm not political. And so I'm kind of straight down the middle, and I focus on policy," said Cook.
Cook added that he's pleased he can "talk to the President about policy."
The distinction Cook makes is important. Instead of focusing on controversial topics, perhaps the stances the White House takes on topics like DEI, Immigration, and the war in Iran, Cook is focusing on policy decisions that directly affect Apple and its products.
Whether or not you buy that Cook is essentially apolitical, lives in the middle, and can so neatly silo policy and politics, Cook's statements and actions make his strategy clear.
As Cook told Strahan, "We're a very proud American company and want to do as much here as we possibly can." Apple has, in recent years, been moving some component manufacturing for iPhone glass and some Apple silicon to the US, though iPhone assembly still happens outside the US.
For Cook and Apple, it seems, "policy" equals "business". It's fairly clear Cook is not talking to Trump about issues of affordable housing, hunger, and gas prices. Instead, he's laser-focused on the things that impact your iPhone. MacBook and iPad.
It's a narrow view that may not assuage all his critics, but at least Cook has provided some clarity on how he runs a company that, according to its stated company values, views business as something that "can and should be a force for good” while dealing with a US administration that some view as working in the opposite direction.
Cook's close relationship with the White House may soon be tested. When Strahan asked him about the $3.3 billion in US tariffs Apple has paid in the first three quarters of the fiscal year, and if he would, as some companies are doing, sue to get the funds back, Cook didn't exactly say Apple won't.
"Well, we're monitoring the situation as to and to see what the courts will rule there, and we'll decide accordingly," said Cook.
That's not exactly a no.
Cook will, it seems, have time to figure it out. When asked by Strahan if he's ready to step back, Cook said talk about that was just rumor, and that, "I can't imagine life without Apple."
