Legislators are acting on fears that the ownership structure of the company poses a threat to national security, and on Wednesday they are poised to enact a bill that might result in the popular video app TikTok being banned in the United States.
Within six months of the bill’s passage, the Chinese company ByteDance would have to stop owning TikTok and other apps it owns, or else the apps would be banned.
The congressmen claim that ByteDance is under the control of the Chinese government, which has the right to request access to any time to the consumer data of TikTok in the United States. The source of the concern is a series of national security legislation in China that require organizations to cooperate with intelligence gathering.
Laptops 1000The bill’s passage in the House would only be the beginning. For the proposal to become law, the Senate would also need to approve it, and senators there promised to give it careful consideration.
The Senate’s top Democrat, Chuck Schumer, stated that in order to decide the course of the measure, he will need to confer with the chairs of the pertinent committees.
According to President Joe Biden, he will sign the bill if Congress approves it.
The long-running conflict between legislators and the IT sector is about to take a new turn thanks to the House decision. Congressmen have long criticized digital platforms and their broad influence, frequently arguing with business leaders about business practices.
However, only months before an election, lawmakers are singling out TikTok, a popular network with millions of users, many of whom are younger.
A senior national security official in the Biden administration briefed lawmakers behind closed doors on Tuesday about TikTok and its ramifications for national security before of the House vote.
Legislators are trying to strike a balance between the desire to protect internet free expression and these security concerns.
The bill’s author, Representative Mike Gallagher, stated as he left the briefing, “What we’ve tried to do here is be very thoughtful and deliberate about the need to force a divestiture of TikTok without granting any authority to the executive branch to regulate content or go after any American company.”
For a long time, TikTok has refuted claims that it could be a weapon of the Chinese government. According to the corporation, it has never given Chinese authorities access to customer data from Americans and won’t if requested.
Additionally, there is currently no proof from the US government demonstrating that TikTok gave Chinese officials access to such information.
Laptops 1000In the US, the platform is used by over 170 million people. The security briefing appeared to reinforce both sides’ positions rather than alter many people’s opinions.
Rep. Robert Garcia, a Democrat from California, however, asserted that he hasn’t received any material persuading him that TikTok poses a risk to national security. “After that briefing, my opinion hasn’t changed at all,” he declared.
I find it crazy that we’re going to outlaw small business owners and entrepreneurs—who are, in essence, the main means by which young people interact with one another,” Garcia added.
Following the bill’s introduction last week, Republican leaders have moved swiftly to bring it up for discussion. A House committee, flooded with calls from TikTok users pleading with them to give up on the project, nevertheless adopted the law unanimously on a vote of 50 to 1. The attack was so severe that several offices even turned off their phones.
Politicians from both parties are eager to take China on a number of topics. The House established a special committee to study matters pertaining to China. Schumer also instructed committee chairs to start collaborating with Republicans on a bipartisan bill that addresses China competition. Although they indicate they don’t want to move too quickly, senators are saying they are open to the idea.
Sen. Ron Wyden, a Democrat from Oregon, stated, “I don’t think your rapid technological advancement is a redeeming quality because history shows you make a lot of mistakes.”
House Republicans are putting a rare bit of distance between themselves and former President Donald Trump as he runs for reelection by moving forward with the proposal.
Trump has expressed his disapproval of the endeavor. On Monday, he stated that although he still thinks TikTok is a national security issue, he is against banning the immensely popular app because that would benefit its rival, Facebook, whom he continues to criticize for losing the 2020 election.
Using an executive order, President Trump attempted to outlaw TikTok by claiming that it posed a threat to “the national security, foreign policy, and economy of the United States” and that “the spread in the United States of mobile applications developed and owned by companies in the People’s Republic of China (China)”.
Laptops 1000 However, once TikTok filed a lawsuit, the courts rejected the move, claiming that it would violate the right to free speech and due process.
