The US House of Representatives is set to vote on Wednesday on a law that might require TikTok to “cut ties with its Chinese owner or get banned in the United States.” This potential law represents the “biggest threat yet” to TikTok, a widely loved video app. Despite its popularity, there’s “intense nervousness amongst governments and security officials about its Chinese ownership.”
The vote is expected at “10:00 am (1400 GMT)” and it’s anticipated to “pass overwhelmingly,” showing a “rare moment of bipartisan entente” in a politically split Washington.
However, the outcome in the Senate remains “uncertain,” reflecting concerns over the impact on an app that has “170 million US users” in the US.
President Joe Biden has signaled he would “sign the bill,” officially known as the “Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act,” into law, according to the White House.
The proposed legislation demands that ByteDance, TikTok’s parent company, either “sell the app within 180 days” or face being banned from the Apple and Google app stores in the US. It also allows the president to label other apps as a “national security threat” if they’re under control of a hostile country.
TikTok was caught off guard by this “resurgent campaign” from Washington, especially after Biden recently joined the platform. TikTok’s CEO is actively “trying to shore up support to stop the bill.”
TikTok’s stance, as articulated by Michael Beckerman, its vice president for public policy, criticized the fast-tracking of this legislation, claiming it “poses serious Constitutional concerns.”
China has criticized the US’s actions, suggesting the move will “inevitably come back to bite the United States” and describing US efforts as lacking evidence and constituting “bullying behavior.”
In a change from his previous position, Donald Trump expressed opposition to a ban, mainly because it could benefit Meta, which he considers an “enemy of the people.” This is a departure from his presidency when he attempted to control TikTok’s operations.
Other attempts to ban TikTok have floundered, often due to “free speech concerns.” For instance, a law in Montana that sought to ban TikTok was halted by a federal court.
TikTok maintains that it “staunchly denies any ties to the Chinese government” and asserts that it has reorganized its operations to ensure US user data remains within the country.
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