TikTok became available to users in the United States again on Sunday after President-elect Donald Trump promised to sign an executive order that would delay a ban on the platform. The TikTok app became unavailable to US users late Saturday in preparation for a law that takes effect on January 19, the day before Trump is inaugurated as president at noon Eastern time.
“In agreement with our service providers, TikTok is in the process of restoring service,” the social media platform wrote. Sunday the tenth. “We thank President Trump for providing needed clarity and assurance to our service providers that they will face no penalties for providing TikTok to more than 170 million Americans and allowing more than 7 million small businesses to thrive.”
TikTok praised Trump in a warning posted Saturday night that users saw when they tried to open the app. The social media app said in a statement on Sunday that restoring its service is a positive development for freedom of expression.
“It is a strong position in favor of the First Amendment and against arbitrary censorship. We will work with President Trump on a long-term solution that keeps TikTok in the United States,” the ByteDance-owned company wrote.
President-elect Trump, an authoritarian billionaire who has promised to target his political enemies, announced Sunday morning that he would issue an executive order ensuring TikTok’s ability to operate in the United States while an agreement is reached to figure out something long-term.
“I am asking companies not to allow TikTok to remain dark! I will issue an executive order on Monday to extend the period of time before the ban imposed by the law takes effect, so that we can reach an agreement to protect our national security. “I will confirm,” Trump wrote Sunday morning on his social media platform. “It is also the case that there will be no liability for any company that helped prevent TikTok from going dark prior to my order.” Social truth.
Oddly enough, Trump indicated that his primary concern about making TikTok available on Monday is that he wants people to be able to see him become president again.
Trump continued: “Americans deserve to see our exciting inauguration on Monday, in addition to other events and conversations.”
But the most bizarre element of Trump’s announcement concerns his apparent plans for how to structure a deal that would allow the app to continue its operations in the United States. The president-elect has indicated that the federal government may take some sort of ownership stake in the social media company. Although no details were provided on how this would work.
“I would like the US to take 50% ownership in a joint venture. By doing so, we save TikTok, keep it in good hands and allow it to express itself. Without US approval, there will be no TikTok (sic). Trump wrote: “With our approval, it is worth hundreds of billions of dollars, perhaps trillions.”
The billionaire was clearly hinting at how profitable this deal was as a sign that he should be praised and perhaps see some sort of benefit for himself.
“So, my initial idea is a joint venture between the current owners and/or new owners, where the US gets 50% ownership in a joint venture created between the US and any purchase we choose.”
It’s long been known that Trump’s relationship with everyone is transactional, but it’s not yet entirely clear whether the next president will personally benefit from the TikTok deal, as he has in so many other areas of life.
Republican Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas wasn’t necessarily happy with the way things are going with TikTok, issuing a statement praising companies like Apple and Google for removing the app from their stores while saying there was no legal way to extend any timeline.
“We applaud Amazon, Apple, Google, and Microsoft for following the law and ceasing operations with ByteDance and TikTok, and we encourage other companies to do the same. After all, the law threatens devastating bankruptcy for any company that violates it. Now that the law is in effect, no There is a legal basis for any type of “extension” of its effective date.” Published online.
But Cotton’s dissatisfaction may not amount to much now that Trump is in office again, because laws are only real if they are enforced. The executive branch, which includes the US Department of Justice, will be responsible for enforcing the law to “ban or withdraw” TikTok.
“For TikTok to return online in the future, ByteDance must agree to a sale that meets the law’s requirements for a qualified divestment by severing all ties between TikTok and Communist China,” Cotton continued. “Only then will Americans be protected from the dangerous threat that communist-controlled TikTok poses to their privacy and security.”
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