Durbin Pleased By Reports Of Walgreens Staying In The U.S.
(CBS) -- Senator Dick Durbin says he is pleased by Walgreens apparent decision to leave its corporate headquarters in Deerfield.
President Obama said last month that a move overseas would be "wrong," and Durbin said many customers who spoke with him agreed. He said a number of people who identified themselves as long-time Walgreens shoppers promised that they never again would patronize the drug chain if its corporate offices were moved overseas.
Now, Durbin said, the same pressure must be brought to bear on other businesses considering the so-called "tax inversion."
He said there is room for changes in the nation's tax code, although he said few corporations pay the full 35 percent rate, which he conceded is the highest in the world. But he said the United States will never be the lowest, because of tax havens, such as the Cayman Islands, in which there are no corporate income taxes.
Durbin said it's wrong for companies built in the United States to reap all of the benefits, and then move their corporate offices overseas.
Durbin has an 8:15 a.m. Wednesday appointment to speak by phone with Walgreen's CEO.