US House to Vote on TikTok Ban Over Chinese Ownership Concerns
The US House of Representatives is poised to vote Wednesday on a bill that could compel TikTok to sever ties with its Chinese parent company or face a ban in the United States.
The proposed legislation represents the most substantial threat yet to the popular video-sharing app, which has amassed a vast global following while raising significant apprehension among governments and security agencies regarding its Chinese ownership and potential allegiance to the Communist Party in Beijing.
The vote is scheduled for 10:00 am (1400 GMT) and is anticipated to pass with overwhelming support, marking a rare moment of bipartisan unity in a politically polarized Washington.
While the bill's fate remains uncertain in the Senate, where influential figures oppose such drastic action against the immensely popular app boasting 170 million US users, President Joe Biden has signaled his willingness to sign it into law if it reaches his desk, according to the White House.
The legislation, officially titled the “Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act,” which unanimously cleared the committee last week, would mandate ByteDance, TikTok’s parent company, to divest the app within 180 days or face removal from Apple and Google app stores in the United States.
Furthermore, the bill would empower the president to identify other applications as national security threats if they are controlled by countries considered adversarial to the US.
The renewed offensive against TikTok by Washington reportedly caught the company off guard, with executives initially reassured when President Biden joined the app last month during his reelection campaign.
TikTok's CEO, Shou Zi Chew, is currently in Washington, rallying support to thwart the bill.
In response to the proposed legislation, TikTok's vice president for public policy, Michael Beckerman, penned a letter to the bill’s co-sponsors, expressing serious constitutional concerns about the rushed nature of the legislation, as it did not undergo a public hearing.
While the bill's co-sponsors, House Republican Mike Gallagher and House Democrat Raja Krishnamoorthi, along with the White House, assert that the legislation is not a ban on TikTok, as long as the company separates from ByteDance, China has warned that the move will have repercussions for the United States.
Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin criticized the US for not providing evidence that TikTok poses a national security threat, labeling the actions as "bullying behavior."
Former President Donald Trump, who previously sought to wrest control of TikTok from ByteDance during his tenure, has now expressed opposition to a ban, citing concerns that it would benefit Meta, the parent company of Instagram and Facebook, which he dubbed an "enemy of the people."
Previous attempts to ban TikTok, including a bill proposed last year and a state law in Montana, were largely stymied over free speech concerns, with the latter being suspended by a federal court for likely violating constitutional free speech rights.
TikTok has consistently denied any affiliation with the Chinese government and has reorganized its operations to ensure that the data of US users remains within the country.
