WASHINGTON — TikTok has more than 150 million American users, more than any other country in the world. But a bipartisan group of lawmakers is giving ByteDance, the Chinese-owned parent company of TikTok, an ultimatum: Sell it within six months, or it’ll no longer be available in U.S. app stores.
“I would submit, this bill provides the only path for the app to continue its operations in the United States without threatening Americans’ online freedom, privacy and security,” said Rep. Mike Gallagher, R-Green Bay.
Gallagher, who heads the special House committee investigating China, said TikTok poses a national security threat, arguing the Chinese government could use it to access the data of users, or influence users by having them view certain videos.
“This is also an election year,” noted Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-Ill.
Krishnamoorthi said China has interfered in elections, including Taiwan, which he and Gallagher recently visited, and that Americans should be worried that China could use TikTok to interfere in U.S. elections, too. But the lawmakers are battling popular opinion and constitutional issues.
A Pew Research poll in December found that only 38% of adults support a federal TikTok ban. That support falls to 18% for adolescents from 13 to 17 years old. Another Democrat, Rep. Jake Auchincloss of Massachusetts, said the legislation also would protect kids and their mental health.
“Congress needs to step up and fight on behalf of parents and for their kids, but we can’t do that if TikTok doesn’t answer to Congress,” Auchincloss said.
In a statement, TikTok said banning TikTok would “trample” First Amendment rights and deprive small businesses from a platform they rely on. But Gallagher said it’s more about creating a structure to protect Americans from apps controlled by foreign adversaries, rather than targeting TikTok specifically.
Similar legislation gained traction a year ago and then stalled. Gallagher argued this is a better bill.
“We've emerged in a framework that we think is thoughtful, deliberative, focused, avoids any constitutional pitfalls and represents a viable path forward on a critical national security issue,” Gallagher said.
The Wisconsin Republican recently announced he’d retire at the end of this term. Gallagher told Spectrum News Wednesday what he plans to focus on for the remainder of his time on Capitol Hill.
“There's a whole host of stuff that will go into the Defense Authorization Act and this or that, but it's [TikTok], it's outbound capital flows — and we're involved in this negotiation between the Financial Services Committee and in my committee, that would be huge. And then things like CFIUS reform to get at Chinese purchase of land here in America,” Gallagher said. “There's about 10 to 20 priority pieces of legislation that come from our policy reports and the analysis we've done over the last year that we're trying to turn into law. And there's a lot of things that just, quite frankly, can't pass in this Congress that are a blueprint for action for future Congresses.”
The Biden Administration said it wants to work with Congress on the TikTok legislation but has some concerns about whether the current version can withstand legal challenges. The bill is expected to get an initial vote in a House committee on Thursday.