Corning Incorporated is an American manufacturer of glass, ceramics, and related materials, primarily for industrial and scientific applications. As of 2012 Corning had six major business sectors: Display Technologies, Environmental Technologies, Life Sciences, Telecommunications, Specialty Materials and Dodging Taxes.  In 1998 Corning divested itself of Pyrex.

From Think Progress:

Over a four years period from 2008 to 2011, Corning Inc. was one of 26 companies that managed to avoid paying any American income taxes, even though it earned nearly $3 billion during that time. In fact, according to Citizens For Tax Justice (CTJ), the company received a $4 million refund from 2008 to 2010. That didn’t stop Susan Ford,  a senior executive at the company, from telling the House Ways and Means Committee this week that America’s high corporate tax rate was putting her company at a disadvantage:

“American manufacturers are at a distinct disadvantage to competitors headquartered in other countries. Specifically, foreign manufacturers uniformly face a lower corporate tax rate than U.S. manufacturers, and virtually all operate under territorial systems which encourage investment both abroad and at home.”

Ford told the committee that Corning paid an effective tax rate of 36 percent in 2011, but as CTJ notes, she is counting taxes on profits earned overseas that haven’t yet been paid and won’t be unless the company decides to bring the money back to the United States. Corning’s actual tax rate in 2011, according to CTJ’s analysis, was actually negative 0.2 percent.

Susan Ford (no relation to that Susan Ford) proves once and for all that even Welfare Queens can break the pyrex ceiling.  You know that $4 million dollar refund – some of it went to Susan Ford to lobby against  paying taxes they are not even paying! Your tax dollars are subsidizing their lobbying to make you pay more taxes!  It is the perfect circle jerk.

BTW, the non-partisan organization Public Campaign said that Corning – the Corning that paid no income tax and received a $4 million tax rebate – made $2 billion in profits from 2008-10, spent $2.81 million on lobbying and gave their top 5 executives between $35 and $45 million per year in compensation

I have a great way for the government to save money – disband the IRS and we can just mail our checks directly to Corning and other “job creators.”  Thank God Republicans are working hard to cut food stamps and Medicare, so that the money can go where it’s truly needed: poor, overtaxed companies like Corning.