'Apologize to Apple'?

Apple may be one of the nation's richest companies, but it did so by avoiding billions in taxes here and around the world. Congressional investigators found that the tech giant created "a web of subsidiaries so complex it spanned continents and went beyond anything most experts had ever seen," relying on "gimmicks" and "schemes" to sidestep tax laws.

This has generated a fair amount of bipartisan criticism, though Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) doesn't seem bothered. In fact, he wants the Senate to apologize to Apple for bothering the company.

Paul not only endorsed Apple's tax-avoidance schemes, but condemned Congress itself for daring to question the company's efforts to circumvent international tax burdens. The Kentucky Republican said he's "offended by the tone and tenor of this hearing," and lamented the very idea of "berating" a company just because it's taken unprecedented steps to avoid meeting its responsibilities, largely by creating shell companies abroad with no real employees.

"If anyone should be on trial here, it should be Congress," Paul declared. "I frankly think the committee should apologize to Apple.... I would say what we really need to do is to apologize to Apple, compliment them for the job creation they are doing, and get about doing our job.

Nearly three years ago, after much of the country -- and much of Congress -- was condemning BP for the massive Deepwater Horizon oil spill, Rep. Joe Barton (R-Texas) apologized to the oil giant, saying it was wrong for Washington to try to hold the company responsible for its failures.

And now, it's Rand Paul wanting to apologize to Apple for questioning its tax-avoidance schemes. Amazing.