Taxes, schmaxes: Congress wants you to know it loves Apple

You could be forgiven for thinking that the big hearing before the U.S. Senate’s Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations this week was a chance for lawmakers to grill Apple about some of its controversial tax practices. And yes, there was some of that.

But as Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook testified, lawmakers were eager for him, and really, all of us, to know that they love Apple. They really do! Just like regular folks.

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“I love Apple,” said Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.). “I harassed my husband until he converted to a Macbook. I’m very proud of Apple as an American company.”

Ho-kay. Can anyone top that?

Here’s Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich.), noting:

“We love the iPhone and the iPad. People in Mexico and Canada love the iPhone and the iPad. I’ve got one right here!” Levin said, whipping out an iPhone with a yellow bumper. “My granddaughter even knows how to use it. It’s a terrific instrument.”

And now, over to you, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.):

“I’m out of time but what I really wanted to ask was why ... I have to keep updating apps on my iPhone all the time and why you don’t fix that,” McCain said.

Perhaps showing his greatest restraint of the hearings, Cook managed to avoid telling McCain that’s exactly how the iPhone and apps are supposed to work.

“Sir, we try to make them better all the time,” Cook said with a smile.

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