I think the policy dilemma is that you are both right to some degree. If it wasn't such an ideologically charged issue, the solution would be quite simple. Tax repatriated profits but reduce the amount payable by the taxes paid overseas. Or enter into a double taxation agreement with the countries involved.
I think it would be reasonable to reduce the tax by the amount of foreign tax paid, but I don't think it would fix the problem. Most of the money in offshore havens was barely taxed. So instead of 35%, Apple can pay maybe 30% bringing it home. That's not enough of a drop to motivate them. It would probably open some more loopholes, too, but I can't be sure about that.
The real issue is that some countries want to allow this stuff. They want these shell companies because it brings them some revenue they wouldn't otherwise have. And who can blame them, really. So as long as we have international companies, we'll have tax havens. I'm not sure if there really is a fix.
Companies already get to reduce their US tax by the amount of tax they paid a foreign government. The issue here is that that they've moved the profits to places where little or no taxes are paid at all. This is not about double taxation.
