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Politics

Apple CEO Cook Uses His Star Power to Fend Off Antitrust Threat

The company spent a record amount on lobbying in the first half of the year

Tim Cook on screen during the Apple Worldwide Developers Conference in Cupertino, California, on June 6.
Tim Cook on screen during the Apple Worldwide Developers Conference in Cupertino, California, on June 6.Photographer: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg

Apple Inc. Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook wasn't fully sold on having a team of Washington lobbyists a decade ago. Like Steve Jobs, his predecessor and mentor, Cook believed Apple’s slick products should do the talking.

But Apple’s hands-off era in the nation’s capital is over.