The move represents one of the most significant threats to the U.S. operations of the wildly popular app used by about 170 million Americans, but China-based parent company ByteDance has long been in Washington’s national security zone. This has raised concerns about security.
TikTok is a “spy balloon on Americans’ cell phones” used to “monitor and exploit Americans’ personal information,” said Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas), chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee. the state) said Saturday while introducing the controversial measure.
The House of Representatives approved new penalties against Russia and Iran, voting 360-58 to approve a bill that would require TikTok to withdraw from ByteDance or face a ban. This is one of several measures being considered alongside the $95 billion foreign aid bill.
House lawmakers overwhelmingly pushed an earlier version of the bill targeting TikTok last month by tying the issue to an aid package that has broad bipartisan support in both chambers.
President Biden said last month that he would sign the TikTok bill if passed by Congress, and on Wednesday he supported the House’s foreign aid package, saying, “The House must pass this bill this week, and the Senate should quickly follow.” did.
The Senate is scheduled to take up the issue on Tuesday, Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer of New York said in an emailed statement to the Post. “The Senate is now ready to take the next step,” Schumer said.
The latest version of the bill would allow ByteDance to sell TikTok within up to 360 days. If they refuse or fail during that time, mobile app stores and web hosting providers will no longer be able to offer the app to users in the United States, effectively resulting in a nationwide ban. While the bill specifically targets TikTok and ByteDance, it would also give the president the power to impose similar ultimatums on other apps deemed to be “controlled” by “foreign adversaries.” become.
The TikTok bill has broad bipartisan support in the House.
Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.) and Rep. Frank Pallone Jr. (R-Washington) said, “Corporations and bad actors are harvesting our data unchecked and exploiting Americans of all ages.” It is used to exploit, monetize and manipulate.” on Saturday in a statement praising the passage of the bill. “This cannot be allowed to continue.”
TikTok has denounced efforts by lawmakers to potentially ban the app as an affront to free speech and disputed suggestions by lawmakers that the app is beholden to China or the government.
Since lawmakers introduced the latest proposal targeting the app last month, the company has launched a major counterattack against the effort, engaging large numbers of users through pop-up notifications to voice their opposition to the bill. He continued to call members of Congress.
“The House of Representatives is using the cover of critical foreign and humanitarian aid to reinstate a ban that would trample the free speech rights of 170 million Americans, destroy 7 million businesses, and shut down the platforms that contribute to them.” “It’s unfortunate that you’re trying to disrupt TikTok, which contributes $24 billion a year to the U.S. economy,” TikTok said in a statement to The Washington Post on Saturday.
After House members passed the initial TikTok bill in just over a week, many senators called for the Senate to delay consideration. Senate Commerce Committee Chair Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), which oversees the bill, initially expressed concerns about whether the proposal would withstand legal scrutiny and called for a public hearing.
But since then, many senators have endorsed the proposal and plan to include it in foreign aid packages.cantwell announced on Wednesday She said she now supports the bill after lawmakers agreed to give Bytedance more time to sell TikTok.
Sens. Mark R. Warner (D-Va.) and Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), the leaders of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said they support the bill’s inclusion in the aid package. The office confirmed. Both lawmakers previously led separate legislative efforts to address concerns surrounding the app.
“I am pleased that the House of Representatives will help advance this important bill to force Beijing-based ByteDance to sell its ownership of TikTok,” Warner said in a statement to the Post. Ta.
Daniel Castro, vice president of the Information Technology Innovation Foundation, dismissed the idea that TikTok is a national security threat, saying that even though the Chinese government demands access to user data, “the app is particularly sensitive. “We are not collecting highly sensitive data.”
“Policymakers have legitimate concerns about Chinese apps and mutual access to China’s digital markets, but through concrete, scalable, and sound policies, These issues need to be addressed.”
Castro said a potential ban on TikTok would hurt U.S. businesses and content creators who use the platform to market their products and services.
The effort is likely to face major legal hurdles, similar to previous attempts by the Trump administration and states to force sales or bans on the app.
Nadine Farid Johnson, policy director for the Knight First Amendment Institute, a free speech advocacy group, said in a statement Friday that the TikTok bill would be a “constitutional amendment that would give Americans access to information, ideas, and media. “This violates Article 1 rights.” from overseas. “
“Lawmakers who are truly concerned about the practices of social media platforms have better options at their disposal, and we urge them to stop undermining the First Amendment rights of millions of Americans. We continue to urge people to rely on those options instead,” Johnson said.
