Apple CEO Tim Cook, Google cofounder Larry Page and Tesla and SpaceX chief Elon Musk reportedly had a secret meeting at the American Enterprise Institute’s annual World Forum with top GOP representatives this past weekend. This meeting was aimed at discussing ways to halt Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, said a report from the Huffington Post on Monday.
Many big names present
The Huffington Post, citing unnamed sources, said a swath of corporate, private and political interests were present at the meeting, which was held at the Sea Island resort off the coast of Georgia. This event was closed to the public and the media, the report says.
Several issues were discussed at the conference, among which Trump’s bid for the White House was the main one. Apart from Apple’s CEO, Page and Musk, there were a few more prominent people from tech and government present at the conference, including Napster creator Sean Parker and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.
Also House Speaker Paul Ryan, a crowd of Republican senators, and at least one Democrat, Maryland Rep. John Delaney, were reportedly present. Prominent policy analyst Karl Rove was there as well. There were a few representing the private sector as well, including billionaire Philip Anschutz and The New York Times publisher Arthur Sulzberger, among others.
Referencing Karl Marx’s Communist Manifesto, political commentator Bill Kristol wrote an email from the conference, saying “A specter was haunting the World Forum—the specter of Donald Trump. There was much unhappiness about his emergence, a good deal of talk, some of it insightful and thoughtful, about why he’s done so well, and many expressions of hope that he would be defeated.”
Apple’s e-books price-fixing appeal turned down
In other Apple news, the iPhone maker was found guilty of conspiring with five publishers to increase e-book prices and thus was ordered to make a payment of $450 million as part of a settlement. The company challenged the decision in the Supreme Court, which on Monday declined to hear its appeal.
In June 2015, the New York-based 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals found Apple liable for engaging in a conspiracy that violated federal antitrust laws in June 2015. Apple requested that the higher court hear the case, saying that the decision the appeals court gave was in contradiction to the Supreme Court precedent and would “chill innovation and risk-taking.”
