The push that could see TikTok banned in the U.S. progressed a little further over the weekend, with the bill now poised to come before the Senate this week or next.
The bill, which was initially proposed last month, and aims to force TikTok into U.S. ownership, or face a ban in the U.S., has already passed a vote in the House of Representatives, with the Senate being the next stage for its passage. But a Senate vote had stalled, amid other priorities, and legislative technicalities.
In order to accelerate the bill, Senators have now re-packaged it into a broader foreign aid push, which also includes provisions for military aid in Ukraine and Israel, and humanitarian aid in Gaza. That re-packaged bundle has now also been passed by the House, which should see it presented before the Senate faster, given the urgency of these other measures.
Which means that TikTok’s day of judgment will come, very soon.
And from the looks of things, it could very well end up being a ban, despite the bill relating to a forced sell-off, and not a total restriction as such.
That’s because the Chinese Government has vowed to oppose the sell-off plan, which TikTok’s local representatives have now also reiterated.
As per TikTok’s head of public policy for the Americas Michael Beckerman:
“This is an unprecedented deal worked out between the Republican Speaker and President Biden. At the stage that the bill is signed, we will move to the courts for a legal challenge.”
Which sounds like TikTok is getting the sense that the bill will be signed, but to be clear, if the bill is approved, ByteDance will still have at least 9 months, with a possible extension to 12 months, to arrange a sell-off, and/or propose an alternative solution.
So while the bill is getting close, it’s not like TikTok will suddenly be gone from your device overnight.
And there are still several challenges that remain.
For one, Members of Congress have raised questions about the constitutionality of the proposal, particularly because it targets a specific company by name. In matters of national security, constitutional specifics can bear less weight, but the fact that this has become an anti-TikTok bill, as opposed to a broader, more even-handed proposal, relating to all foreign-owned entities, could be a vector for legal challenge.
The Chinese Government is also seeking to push back in any way that it can, which could lead to further sanctions and disruption in U.S.-China relations.
And, of course, it still has to pass a Senate vote. Which, given that several Republican Senators have voiced their personal opposition to the proposal, is also not guaranteed.
But it does sound like TikTok is preparing for it to be approved, which will see it move to the next stage of its defense.
Will that see TikTok banned entirely? We’ll find out, likely very soon.
