In Washington – On March 11, US presidential candidate Donald Trump said that TikTok threatened national security. However, he also said banning the popular app would hurt some kids and strengthen Meta Platforms’ Facebook, which he has strongly opposed. Former President Trump said that he thinks TikTok threatens US national security. He also worried that banning the app would help competitors like Facebook.
Why It Matters
At first, Trump backed efforts to ban the app in the US, but he recently changed his mind. When asked why he changed his mind, Trump said that Congress should have banned TikTok while he was president. As the Republican presidential nominee, Trump has much power over his party’s lawmakers on Capitol Hill. This means he could stop a new bill in the House targeting the very popular app.
Concerns of US Lawmakers
US lawmakers and intelligence officials worry that China could use TikTok to spy on users and show them content that could sway their choices in the November presidential election. TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew testified before Congress for hours last year. He said the app is secure and the Chinese government does not access US user data.
Trump has hosted controversial conservatives like Libs of TikTok and Babylon Bee at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida to get voters back. Chaya Raichik, who created the far-right TikTok account Libs, has been criticised for posting LGBTQ-obscene content.
The Big Picture
Top Officials in the United States have warned many times that the Chinese government could use TikTok to start propaganda campaigns and get private information about American users. Trump led the first effort to ban TikTok when he was president. But he seemed to change his mind last week when he said that blocking TikTok would “double” Facebook’s business. During his appearance on “Squawk Box,” Trump repeated these points and said that a ban on TikTok would be “big for” Facebook and other sites.
At the same time that Trump spoke out against TikTok, Congress was debating a bill that could ban the app in the US. Biden has said he will sign the bill if it gets to him. The bill is the latest threat to the app, which claims over 170 million US monthly active users despite concerns about data security and China ties.
It would not ban TikTok, but ByteDance, the Chinese company that owns it, would have to sell it or face restrictions that could keep it out of US app stores. Before reaching Biden’s desk, the bill must pass both houses of Congress and the Senate must introduce its bill.
Conclusion
Last week on Truth Social, Trump called Facebook a “enemy of the people” and said destroying TikTok would help Mark Zuckerberg “double their business.” Trump’s Facebook and Instagram posts about the January 6, 2021 Capitol attack angered people. He lost his accounts the next day.
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