Senate passes TikTok ban bill, sending it to President Biden’s desk

A measure that would unit China-based institution ByteDance to waste TikTok — or other look a US prohibition of nan level — is each but definite to go rule aft nan Senate passed a overseas assistance package including nan measure.

It now heads to President Joe Biden, who already committed to signing nan TikTok authorities should it make it done some chambers of Congress. The House passed nan overseas assistance package that includes nan TikTok measure connected Saturday.

Once signed by nan president, ByteDance would person up to a twelvemonth to complete a waste of TikTok aliases look an effective prohibition for nan level successful nan US. The measure gives ByteDance an first 9 months and gives nan president discretion to widen it different 3 should location beryllium advancement toward a deal. Still, ineligible challenges could perchance hold enforcement.

The Senate ballot came together owed to clever governmental maneuvering successful nan House, which has now doubly voted to walk nan TikTok legislation. The first time, House lawmakers overwhelmingly voted successful favour of nan bill erstwhile brought arsenic a standalone measurement pinch a shorter divestment timeframe of six months. But cardinal Senate leaders remained noncommittal astir its early successful that chamber.

By packaging it successful nan high-priority overseas assistance package, nan House efficaciously forced nan Senate to return up nan TikTok rumor earlier than they mightiness person otherwise. Extending nan timeline for a woody to hap besides secured much support successful nan Senate. The measure passed 79-18.

Lawmakers and intelligence officials are concerned that TikTok’s ownership by a China-based institution could endanger nan information of its US users. That’s mostly owed to a Chinese nationalist information rule that tin compel companies based location to manus complete soul information. TikTok itself is based successful Singapore, and nan institution says it doesn’t shop US accusation successful China. Some lawmakers person besides worried that nan Chinese authorities could power what types of messages US users see, and felt that TikTok’s run to mobilize users to telephone Congress to reason nan measure only validated those fears.

“Congress is not acting to punish ByteDance, TikTok aliases immoderate other individual company,” Senate Commerce Committee Chair Maria Cantwell (D-WA) said connected nan Senate level up of nan vote. “Congress is acting to prevent foreign adversaries from conducting espionage, surveillance, maligned operations, harming vulnerable Americans, our servicemen and women, and our U.S. government personnel.”

“The truth is, these Chinese companies astatine nan extremity of nan day, they don’t beryllium their obligation to their customers, aliases their shareholders, but they beryllium it to the PRC government,” Senate Intelligence Committee Chair Mark Warner (D-VA) said. “In nan discourse of societal media platforms utilized by astir half of Americans, it’s not difficult to imagine really a level that facilitates truthful overmuch commerce, political discourse, and social debate could beryllium covertly manipulated to service nan goals of an authoritarian regime, one with a agelong way grounds of censorship, transnational repression, and promotion of disinformation.”

Warner added that TikTok’s earlier projected solution to concerns astir its information governance, Project Texas, were inadequate. “Project Texas would still let TikTok’s algorithm, source code, and development activities to stay successful China,” Warner said. “They would stay truthful under ByteDance power and taxable to Chinese authorities exploitation.”

But he besides addressed nan concerns of galore young Americans who usage TikTok and fearfulness this authorities intends it will spell away. “I want to make clear to each Americans, this is not an effort to take your sound away,” Warner said. “Many Americans, particularly young Americans, are rightfully skeptical. At nan extremity of nan day, they’ve not seen what Congress has seen. They’ve not been successful the classified briefings that Congress has held, which person delved more deeply into immoderate of nan threats posed by foreign power of TikTok.”

“But what they person seen, beyond even this bill, is Congress’ failure to enact meaningful consumer protections connected large tech, and may cynically position this arsenic a diversion, aliases worse, a concession to U.S. societal media platforms,” Warner continued. “To those young Americans, I want to say we perceive your concern. And we dream that TikTok will continue under caller ownership, American or otherwise.”

“I will motion this measure into rule and reside nan American group arsenic soon arsenic it reaches my table tomorrow truthful we tin statesman sending weapons and instrumentality to Ukraine this week,” President Biden said successful an official statement released soon aft transition successful nan Senate.

According to Bloomberg, TikTok antecedently told labor that if nan rule is passed, nan institution will situation it successful court.

Update, April 23rd: The article has been updated pinch an charismatic White House statement.