White House Indicates TikTok Ban Decision Will be Up to Trump Following Supreme Court Ruling

January 17, 2025 TruthUSA

“The actions required to implement this law will clearly fall to the incoming Administration,” stated press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre.

On Friday, the White House announced that the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling to maintain a ban on the TikTok social media platform, owned by a Chinese company, will be handled by President-elect Donald Trump’s future administration.

Earlier on Friday, the Supreme Court supported the Biden administration’s decision to uphold the ban, just three days prior to Trump’s inauguration. The ruling determined that a law mandating TikTok to divest from Chinese ownership or face a ban is not a violation of the First Amendment of the Constitution.

“The Administration, like the rest of the country, has awaited the Supreme Court’s decision on the TikTok issue,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre remarked in a statement released on Friday. “Given the timing, this Administration acknowledges that the responsibility for implementing the law must fall upon the next Administration, which will take office on Monday.”

In response to the ruling, Trump told CNN on Friday that he would ultimately decide whether to maintain or prohibit TikTok. However, specifics regarding his intentions for the app were not disclosed.

“The final decision rests with me, so stay tuned for what I will do,” he said.

Prior to the court’s ruling, Trump posted on Truth Social that TikTok was one of the discussion points during his conversation with Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Friday.

While Trump has been critical of the platform owned by ByteDance, he has recently moderated his viewpoint. TikTok’s CEO, Shou Zi Chew, has confirmed his attendance at the inauguration, along with leaders from X, Facebook, Amazon, and other tech companies.

Trump boasts over 10 million followers on TikTok, utilizing the platform during his successful 2024 campaign to connect with younger voters who favor it.

Last April, a bipartisan Congressional bill was passed giving ByteDance 270 days to divest from TikTok or face a ban in the U.S. ByteDance has publicly stated it will not sell, although reports suggest that U.S. investors have been in discussions with the company regarding divestment.

As of Friday, a TikTok sale does not seem forthcoming, and it is set to face an app store ban on January 19. On that date, new users will be unable to download the app or receive updates, although current users will retain the app on their devices for now. However, it is expected to become unusable eventually, as per statements from the Justice Department in court filings.

Jean-Pierre further stated on Friday that the Biden administration believes TikTok “should remain accessible to Americans, under American ownership or another ownership that alleviates the national security concerns outlined by Congress when creating this law.”

The app allows users to enjoy a multitude of videos in about half an hour, with many videos lasting only a few seconds, which was noted in a lawsuit filed last year in Kentucky that claimed TikTok was engineered to be addictive and detrimental to children’s mental health. Similar lawsuits were also filed by over a dozen states. TikTok has refuted these claims as inaccurate.

High Court Decision Aligns with Congressional Action

The court explained, among other points, that the law enacted by Congress determined that TikTok must divest from ByteDance due to concerns over national security, particularly regarding the potential for the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to access sensitive data on American users. Since at least 2014, ByteDance has maintained a committee aligned with the CCP, and the vice president, Zhang Fuping, serves as the company’s CCP secretary.

“Congress has determined that divestiture is essential to address its well-substantiated national security concerns about TikTok’s data collection practices and connection with a foreign foe,” the court asserted in an unsigned opinion, emphasizing that the law “does not infringe on the First Amendment rights of the petitioners.”

Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Neil Gorsuch presented brief, separate opinions expressing some doubts about the ruling but ultimately agreed with the conclusion.

“Undoubtedly, the remedy Congress and the President have chosen here is quite drastic,” Gorsuch noted. Yet, he conveyed he was convinced by the argument that China may obtain access to “extensive amounts of personal information about countless millions of Americans.”

Concerns over the ban and its potential impact on their businesses have been voiced by some TikTok content creators.

“I’m deeply worried about the developments in the coming weeks,” shared Desiree Hill, the proprietor of Crown’s Corner mechanic shop in Conyers, Georgia. “I fear I might lose the chance to reach my customers and worry that I could potentially lose my business within the next six months.”

TikTok, which sued the U.S. government last year pertaining to the law, denies allegations that it could serve as a tool for the Chinese regime. ByteDance has reiterated that it will not sell.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Source link