Thomson Reuters
Apple had a high profile visitor on Friday — United States Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin.
Mnuchin announced the visit in a tweet Friday afternoon that included a picture of him with company CEO Tim Cook inside the iPhone maker's new headquarters in Cupertino, California. In the tweet, Mnuchin thanked Cook for Apple's "commitment" to invest in the United States.
"Glad to visit @Apple HQ with @tim_cook. Thank you for your commitment to invest 350B in USA! #TaxCutsJobsAct," said the tweet.
Tweet Embed://twitter.com/mims/statuses/974759628214071297?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Glad to visit @Apple HQ with @tim_cook. Thank you for your commitment to invest 350B in USA! #TaxCutsJobsAct pic.twitter.com/TasRA55smG
Representatives for Apple and the Treasury Department did not immediately respond to emails seeking comment. It wasn't clear if Mnuchin planned to visit other Silicon Valley companies while in the area, or the topic of conversation between the two.
Mnuchin's tweet refers to Apple's statement in January that it plans to spend $350 billion over the next five years. Although Mnuchin tied that commitment to the recent tax act, Apple made clear in its statement that much of that investment was already planned even before that law was passed.
Still, Apple, with hundreds of billions of dollars in overseas cash, was one of the primary beneficiaries of the new law, which reduced the tax rates companies would have to pay on their foreign stashes.
Mnuchin is a controversial figure in California. In 2008, he purchased a bank later renamed OneWest Bank, which under his leadership foreclosed on tens of thousands of homeowners. Many of those foreclosures were reportedly undertaken without following the proper procedures or paperwork.
The treasury secretary has also been controversial because of a photograph he and his wife took that showed them holding sheets of freshly printed dollar bills. To many observers, the two appeared like villains or criminals, and the photograph quickly went viral.
NOW WATCH: How the super-wealthy hide billions using tax havens and shell companies
See Also:
- Apple exec: 'We think free speech is important but we don't think it's everything'
- A top Apple exec explains you shouldn't bet that it'll buy Netflix or Disney
- Here's what the Galaxy S9 would look like if it had the iPhone X notch
SEE ALSO: Apple is now free to bring home its overseas cash — here's what it might do with it
