WASHINGTON – President Joe Biden said Friday he will sign a bill that could force TikTok’s Chinese owner ByteDance to divest from the popular social media company. It was banned in the United States
“If they pass it, I will sign it,” Biden said, referring to the bipartisan legislation that is on track to receive a vote in the House next week. The draft law ActThe so-called Protecting Americans from Foreign Enemies Controlled Applications Act must also pass the Senate before reaching Biden’s desk.
The legislation would allow the president, through the FBI and intelligence agencies, to designate certain social media programs as national security threats if they are determined to be under the control of foreign adversaries. Applications are considered a risk would be banned From US app stores unless they cut ties with foreign-controlled entities within 180 days.
Members of Congress have made it clear that they intend to force ByteDance to abandon the program. Both sides have expressed concerns about China’s access to US user data, as well as TikTok’s influence on youth.
TikTok launched a lobbying campaign against the effort on Thursday. sending notifications is urging some of its users to call their representatives, claiming that Congress is “planning a total ban” on the app. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-Ill. As some members of Congress said they were inundated with calls from children and teenagers.
“We’ve had kids, we’ve had little kids calling our office and others basically saying, ‘What is Congress? What is a congressman? Can I get my TikTok back?”
While the phones are usually answered by congressional staffers, Rep. Ashley Hinson, R-Iowa, said she personally joined the effort.
“Well, I kind of went into mom mode, didn’t I? Because I know that TikTok has really empowered our youth,” Hinson said. “They filled them with propaganda and it was very, very clear that they proved our point. So I took it into my own hands and got on the phone and tried to explain to our young people why we’re doing what we’re doing,” he says.
“When I explained the legislation to most of these kids and they really understood what was at stake,” said Hinson, who co-sponsored the bill with Krishnamoorthi. They thanked him later, he said.
Despite calls to congressional offices, the bill passed the Energy and Commerce Committee on a unanimous 50-0 vote Thursday. The suspension of the rules will go to the House floor next week, meaning it cannot be replaced and must receive two-thirds support to pass.
Krishnamoorthi said the subpoena campaign “completely backfired” for TikTok, leading to unanimous committee passage. “We can’t have a foreign-run social media app spreading misinformation to our kids to keep them from using their geolocation data the way they use it,” he said.
D.C.A. Rep. Tony Cardenas’ office received multiple calls from a “young person” claiming to have a child in an emergency, Cardenas spokesman Enrique Gutierrez said.
“After multiple calls from this individual and through other internal means, we were able to determine that this was a hoax,” Gutierrez said. “Unfortunately, this incident occurred when our office received hundreds of calls from this TikTok campaign.”
While House Republican leaders have signaled support for the legislation, Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., has yet to take the full measure. He called the committee vote “impressive” and said the subcommittee would talk to Democrats “about the way forward.”
In a statement Thursday, a TikTok spokesperson confirmed that the app had sent notices to US users over the age of 18, alleging that “the government is attempting to deprive 170 million Americans of their constitutional right to free speech.”
Proponents who defend the bill is not a ban. “It just needs to be removed,” Hinson said. “If everything goes as planned, no matter how bad their dancing or food is, they can keep posting their videos.”
Ryan Nobles and Caroline Kenny contributed.