Amazon tangles with Warren on Twitter

Amazon on Thursday engaged in a heated Twitter exchange with Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) after the lawmaker claimed that it and other large corporations “exploit loopholes and tax havens to pay close to nothing in taxes.” 

The exchange began after Warren tweeted a clip from Thursday’s Senate Finance Committee hearing, in which she accused Amazon and other companies of “manipulating the tax code to avoid paying their fair share.” 

Hours later, the Amazon News Twitter account responded with, “You make the tax laws @SenWarren; we just follow them.”

“If you don’t like the laws you’ve created, by all means, change them,” Amazon tweeted, adding that the tech giant “has paid billions of dollars in corporate taxes over the past few years alone.”

Amazon went on to say, “In 2020, we had another $1.7B in federal tax expense and that’s on top of the $18 billion we generated in sales taxes for states and localities in the U.S. Congress designed tax laws to encourage investment in the economy.” 

The company added that since 2010, it has invested $350 billion in the U.S. economy and in 2020, added 400,000 new jobs across the country. 

“And while you’re working on changing the tax code, can we please raise the federal minimum wage to $15?” Amazon asked Warren. 

1/3 You make the tax laws @SenWarren; we just follow them. If you don’t like the laws you’ve created, by all means, change them. Here are the facts: Amazon has paid billions of dollars in corporate taxes over the past few years alone.

— Amazon News (@amazonnews) March 26, 2021

3/3 So what have we done about that? $350B in investments since 2010 & 400K new US jobs last year alone. And while you’re working on changing the tax code, can we please raise the federal minimum wage to $15?

— Amazon News (@amazonnews) March 26, 2021

Warren later Thursday evening hit back at Amazon, tweeting, “I didn’t write the loopholes you exploit … your armies of lawyers and lobbyists did.” 

“But you bet I’ll fight to make you pay your fair share,” she continued. “And fight your union-busting. And fight to break up Big Tech so you’re not powerful enough to heckle senators with snotty tweets.”

I didn’t write the loopholes you exploit, @amazon – your armies of lawyers and lobbyists did. But you bet I’ll fight to make you pay your fair share. And fight your union-busting. And fight to break up Big Tech so you’re not powerful enough to heckle senators with snotty tweets. https://t.co/3vCAI93MST

— Elizabeth Warren (@SenWarren) March 26, 2021

In a final message to the senator, Amazon responded to Warren’s tweet Friday afternoon, arguing that “one of the most powerful politicians in the United States just said she’s going to break up an American company so that they can’t criticize her anymore.”

This is extraordinary and revealing. One of the most powerful politicians in the United States just said she’s going to break up an American company so that they can’t criticize her anymore. https://t.co/Nt0wcZo17g

— Amazon News (@amazonnews) March 26, 2021

Warren has repeatedly aimed criticism at Amazon and other corporations for having overwhelming power in the U.S. economy. 

A wealth tax proposed by the Democratic lawmaker late last month would result in the 100 richest Americans paying more than $78 billion in taxes annually, according to an analysis by Bloomberg News. 

Under the bill, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, who is currently the richest person in the world, would face an additional $5.4 billion in taxes.