President-elect Donald Trump is reportedly expected to try to block a potential US ban of TikTok before the January deadline, according to multiple sources, including longtime aide Kellyanne Conway.
TikTok is fighting in court to block a federal law that would require the app’s China-based parent company ByteDance to sell its stake or shut down entirely by Jan. 19, the day before Trump’s inauguration. The law allows the President to extend the disinvestment period by up to 90 days if there is “significant progress” toward a sale.
Trump vowed on several occasions that he would “save TikTok” if elected president — including in a September 4 post. on truth socialHis support comes despite the fact that Trump led the effort to ban the app during his first term in office.
Since winning the election, Trump has not indicated whether he will try to stop the ban.
But Conway, a senior adviser to Trump during his first term — who TikTok reportedly advocated in Congress over the last year – told the Washington Post She hopes Trump will intervene on behalf of the social media firm.
According to the report, three other unnamed sources familiar with her stance on the matter supported Conway’s claim.
“He appreciates the breadth and reach of TikTok, which he skillfully used with podcasts and new media entrants to win,” Conway told the Jeff Bezos-owned newspaper.
“There are many ways to hold China accountable for alienating 180 million American users every month,” said Conway, who is close to the president-elect. “Trump has already recognized that the Democrats are the party of restrictions — gas-guzzling cars, menthol cigarettes, vapes, plastic straws and TikTok — and letting them own that harsh, anti-individual choice space.”
Trump transition team spokeswoman Carolyn Levitt did not immediately respond to The New York Post’s request for comment.
However, he responded to questions about Trump’s campaign pledge to save the app in a statement to the associated press,
“The American people re-elected President Trump by an overwhelming margin and gave him a mandate to implement the promises he made during the campaign,” Leavitt said. “He will deliver.”
TikTok declined to comment on the report.
Former Justice Department national security adviser Alan Rosenstein told the Washington Post that Trump could push Congress to repeal the law or even tell the attorney general he prefers not to enforce it.
A federal appeals court is expected to rule on TikTok’s challenge by Dec. 6, though further appeals could reach the Supreme Court. These appeals may continue till Trump’s tenure.
As reported by The PostIn September, TikTok’s legal team faced sharp questioning from the three-judge panel deciding the case.
The divestment legislation received broad bipartisan support from lawmakers in Congress who say TikTok is a national security threat. TikTok has denied the allegations and argued that the law violates the First Amendment.
In a March interview with CNBCTrump acknowledged that he considers TikTok a national security threat, but said he was concerned that a ban would benefit Mark Zuckerberg’s Facebook — which he called “the enemy of the people.”
In another potential complication, Trump is reportedly set to choose Senator Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) as secretary of state. Rubio is a famous falcon of China And a sharp critic of TikTok,
