Donald Trump wants to do a deal to keep the popular ByteDance app online (“TikTok Restores Service After US Shutdown Amid Trump Deal,” Reclaim the Net, January 19, 2025).
Will a President Trump, who the day before his inauguration assured rally attendees that he will “fix every single crisis facing our country,” possess the authority to delay the congressionally imposed, Supreme Court–sanctioned shutdown, deadline: January 19, 2025? Killing U.S. access to the app is the only alternative to divestiture provided for in the legislation.
The president-elect says that on day one he will issue an executive order to delay the deadline. Apparently, presidents can now issue executive orders to amend any enacted legislation they’ve got a problem with.
Trump has spoken
It doesn’t seem to matter whether Trump will have the authority or not. In any case, based on the almost-incumbent chief executive’s say-so alone, TikTok is acting to keep itself online in the United States despite having begun to remove itself, and U.S. companies are cooperating.
According to Reclaim the Net, “Barely half a day after TikTok went offline across the United States, the widely popular video-sharing platform is beginning to come back online. This swift reversal follows a statement from TikTok announcing its efforts to restore service, facilitated by new assurances from the Trump administration” (almost-administration; as of this writing, the new Trump administration starts tomorrow).
TikTok’s statement
“In agreement with our service providers, TikTok is in the process of restoring service. We thank President Trump for providing the necessary clarity and assurance to our service providers that they will face no penalties providing TikTok to over 170 million Americans and allowing over 7 million small businesses to thrive.”
TikTok also said: “It’s a strong stand for 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.”
By calling Congress’s action “arbitrary,” TikTok ignores the evidence of all the ways that its app works on behalf of the Chinese Communist Party, just as the company did when challenging the action in court.
Trump’s statement
“I’m asking companies not to let TikTok stay dark! I will issue an executive order on Monday to extend the period of time before the law’s prohibitions take effect, so that we can make a deal to protect our national security. The order will also confirm that there will be no liability for any company that helped keep TikTok from going dark before my order….
“[M]y initial thought is a joint venture between current owners and/or new owners whereby the U.S. gets a 50% ownership in a joint venture set up between the U.S. and whichever purchase[r] we so choose.”
I don’t quite understand the last part. Does this mean that Trump wants the U.S. government to own 50% of TikTok? If so, he should come up with a different thought.
The other thing is this. TikTok has already had months to sell. It allowed the congressional deadline to arrive without selling and without looking at any offers. If TikTok is now willing to sell because Xi Jinping is now willing to sell because of a magic art-of-deal telephone conversation between Xi Jinping an Donald Trump, would such a sale really occur on terms that strip TikTok of all value to the Chinese Communist Party?
Also see:
Network Contagion Research Institute: “How TikTok’s Global Platform Anomalies Align with the Chinese Communist Party’s Geostrategic Objectives”
Heritage.org: “TikTok Generation: A CCP Official in Every Pocket”
