The House overwhelmingly passed a measure Wednesday to force TikTok to split from its parent company or face a national ban, a lightning offensive that materialized abruptly after years of unsuccessful negotiations over the platform’s fate, The Washington Post reported.
The legislation, approved 352 to 65 with 1 voting present, is a sweeping bipartisan rebuke of the popular video-sharing app — and an attempt to grapple with allegations that its China-based parent, ByteDance, presents national security risks. The House effort gained momentum last week after President Biden said he would sign the bill if Congress passed it.
But it’s fate now rests in the Senate, where some lawmakers have expressed concerns it may run afoul of the Constitution by infringing on millions of Americans’ rights to free expression and by explicitly targeting a business operating in the United States.
Though TikTok is incorporated in the United States and has headquarters in Los Angeles, its ties to Beijing-based tech giant ByteDance have long triggered fears the app could be weaponized by Chinese government officials to snoop on Americans or shape their political views. The company says it has never shared U.S. user data with the Chinese government and would not do so if asked, and its critics have yet to present evidence to the contrary.
According to The Washington Post, Wednesday’s vote is the first time a chamber of Congress has approved legislation that could lead to the platform’s prohibition throughout the country.
The bill lacks a companion measure in the Senate, where lawmakers have pushed for competing approaches for months to tackle concerns over apps viewed as security threats. The dynamics signal a tougher and probably slower path to passage.
CNBC reported the House approved a bill Wednesday that calls for China tech giant ByteDance to divest TikTok or the popular social video app will effectively be banned in the U.S.
The measure passed with a resounding 352-65 vote with one member voting present.
The legislation, dubbed the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications App, was introduced March 5 by Reps. Mike Gallagher, R-Wis., and Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-Ill., of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party. Two days later, House members on the Energy and Commerce Committee voted unanimously to approve the bill, which refers to TikTok as a threat to national security because it is controlled by a foreign adversary.
The bill now heads to the Senate where it faces an uncertain future as senators appear divided about the legislation, and other federal and state-led efforts to ban TikTok have stalled.
Although House members who drafted the bill have previously said that it “does not ban TikTok,” the legislation in its current form requires ByteDance to divest TikTok within roughly six months in order for the app “to remain available in the United States.” If the bill is enacted, app store owners such as Apple and Google along with internet-hosting companies would be prohibited from supporting TikTok and other apps that are linked to ByteDance,
In my opinion, I think the Senate is not going to fall in line with the legislation created by two House committees. In general, what comes from the House goes to the Senate, and it is currently unclear how the Senate will view it.