President Trump met today with the El Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele, and as part of the press coverage he answered questions related to US tariffs, including a mention of speaking to Apple CEO Tim Cook and helping him out recently.
Trump says ‘I speak to Tim Cook’ in response to tariff questions
Despite ongoing volatility around US tariff policy, for now at least, Apple seems to have largely dodged a bullet with the recently announced exclusions for smartphones, laptops, computer processors, and more.
Though it was previously unknown why such exclusions went into effect, it seems Trump’s relationship with Tim Cook was a factor.
Earlier today, when discussing possible short-term tariff exemptions for various products, Trump speaks first about the auto industry then is asked: “What about any Apple products, other cell phones?”
Here is his response (via Aaron Rupar):
Look, I’m a very flexible person. I don’t change my mind, but I’m flexible. And you have to be. You just can’t have a wall, and you’ll only go—no, sometimes you have to go around it, under it, or above it.
There’ll be maybe things coming up. I speak to Tim Cook. I helped Tim Cook recently. And that whole business—I’m not, I don’t want to hurt anybody, but the end result is we’re going to the position of greatness for our country.
Although the exact meaning of some of Trump’s words are unclear, a couple things stand out.
Top comment by Blurft
Notable how personal he makes it - it's not "The United States is committed to working with American businesses to promote the best outcomes," it's "I helped Tim Cook."
The obvious implication is that if you help Trump as an individual, he will help you as an individual. It's an invitation for bribery.
He seems to be saying:
- That he helped Cook out with tariff exclusions
- And that Cook is a business leader he speaks to about these economic matters.
Trump’s acknowledgement of Cook’s difficult situation with tariffs seems to point to ongoing favor from the administration toward Apple.
Even though the president doesn’t want to explicitly say that Apple is in the clear, he seems to be signaling that input from Cook will continue being part of his “flexible” approach with tariffs.
We’ll see how things turn out in the months ahead.
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