The whole GE thing you have to be careful with, as to what you exactly mean.

Did GE get away without paying any taxes?

Absolutely not.

They paid every single cent of the Federal, State, and local income tax paid on wages. That means all the stuff that really counts like wage, FICA, SS, and workers comp. On top of any actual state that has a income tax as well. In addition GE paid every single cent of Sales tax in every single State it purchased goods, services, and municipal infrastructural.

What GE didn't have to pay anything on was the FEDERAL TAx LIABILITY! Just make sure you get it right. That tax liability is what is paid on revenues made inside the United States. What GE did is put all of its cost centers in the US, and place all of its revenue centers outside of the US. GE basically had a 2B USD revenue in the US last year, and with taking full right offs for all allowable itemization to the full legal amount was able to offset the FEDERAL TAX LIABILITY for that 2B USD.

The whole rub of it is that no revenue made outside of the US can be used inside of the US or it instantly becomes subject to those set of rules and taxes, which are stiff.

So what GE did was work the Corporate Tax System, which is what the CEO said they did right after this story came out. Don't blame them because our tax code is fucking broken. Be mad at the fucking tax code and the bureaucrats who refuse to fix it because they have been bought and paid for a Trillion times over.

Don't make me have'ta Troll ya Bro!