Trump signed an order delaying the ban on TikTok for 75 days
President Trump chose to delay the ban on TikTok for 75 days by executive order on Monday, marking one of his first steps in his new administration.
Trump signed the order in the Oval Office hours after being inaugurated for his second term. The move comes days after the Supreme Court upheld the ban.
The order also came days after TikTok was briefly offline for US users, and after Trump signaled his interest in keeping the app accessible, even if it is not entirely owned by a US company.
In his executive order, Trump wrote that he has “unique constitutional responsibility for America’s national security, foreign policy conduct, and other important executive functions.”
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“To fulfill those responsibilities, I intend to consult with my advisors, including heads of departments and relevant agencies about the national security issues raised by TikTok, and pursue a decision that protects national security while saving the platform used by 170 million Americans,” Trump said. “My management must also review the critical intelligence related to this concern and assess the adequacy of the mitigation measures taken by TikTok to date.”
Trump added that he had instructed Pam Bondi, his nominee for US attorney general, to suspend any ban for 75 days, which would give the Trump administration “an opportunity to determine the appropriate course of action regarding TikTok.”
“Due to the national security objectives at stake and because section 2(d) of the Act vests the power to investigate and enforce the Act in the Attorney General only, attempted enforcement by the State or private parties must be within the powers of the Council. Executive,” added the order. “The Attorney General shall exercise all powers available to him to preserve and protect the exclusive authority of the executive branch to enforce the Act.”
In an exchange with Fox News Senior White House Correspondent Peter Doocy on Monday, Trump said the future of TikTok “depends on the deal,” and that the US “should be entitled to half of TikTok.”
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“You and members of your group now used to warn about the danger of TikTok spying on the American people,” Doocy told the president. “What has changed that you no longer have a problem with that?”
“I’m not going to make a deal or I’m going to make a deal,” Trump replied. “TikTok is useless, if I don’t approve it, it should be closed … if I make a deal, it costs about $1 trillion. If I make a deal, I’m talking about doing it for the United States.”
In a similar ruling on Friday, the Supreme Court upheld the ban on TikTok and reiterated its concern about the app’s “affiliation with a foreign enemy.”
“There is no doubt that, for more than 170 million Americans, TikTok provides a unique and expansive space for expression, means of communication and a source of community,” the court wrote in the ruling. “But Congress determined that the divestiture was necessary to address its well-founded national security concerns about TikTok’s data collection practices and relations with a foreign adversary.”
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“For the reasons stated above, we conclude that the challenged provisions do not violate appellants’ First Amendment rights. The decision of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit is affirmed.”
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