TikTok ban: US House passes bill that would lead to a ban if China ...

House passage of the bill is only the first step. The Senate would also need to pass the measure for it to become law, and legislators in that chamber indicated it would undergo a thorough review. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, a New York Democrat, said he would have to consult relevant committee chairmen to determine the bill’s path.

President Joe Biden has said if Congress passes the measure, he will sign it.

The House vote is poised to open a new front in the long-running feud between legislators and the tech industry. Members of Congress have long been critical of tech platforms and their expansive influence, often clashing with executives over industry practices. But by targeting TikTok, legislators are singling out a platform popular with millions of people, many of whom skew younger, just months before an election.

Opposition to the bill was also bipartisan. Some Republicans said the US should warn consumers if there are data privacy and propaganda concerns, while some Democrats voiced concerns about the impact a ban would have on its millions of users in the US, many of whom are entrepreneurs and business owners.

“The answer to authoritarianism is not more authoritarianism,” said California Republican congressman Tom McClintock. “The answer to CCP-style propaganda is not CCP-style oppression. Let us slow down before we blunder down this very steep and slippery slope.”

Ahead of the House vote, a top national security official in the Biden administration held a closed-door briefing on Tuesday with legislators to discuss TikTok and the national security implications. Legislators are balancing those security concerns against a desire not to limit free speech online.

“What we’ve tried to do here is be very thoughtful and deliberate about the need to force a divestiture of TikTok without granting any authority to the executive branch to regulate content or go after any American company,” said Wisconsin congressman Mike Gallagher, the bill’s author, as the Republican emerged from the briefing.

TikTok has long denied that it could be used as a tool of the Chinese government. The company has said it has never shared US user data with Chinese authorities and would not do so if it were asked.

To date, the US government also has not provided any evidence that shows TikTok shared such information with Chinese authorities. The platform has about 170 million users in the US.

“We will continue to do all we can, including exercising our legal rights, to protect this amazing platform that we have built with you,” TikTok chief executive Shou Chew said late on Wednesday (Thursday AEDT) in a video posted to TikTok and X. “I encourage you to keep sharing your stories. Share them with your friends, share them with your family, share them with your senators.”

“We have a national security obligation to prevent America’s most strategic adversary from being so involved in our lives,” said New York Republican congressman Nick LaLota.

But California Democrat congressman Robert Garcia said no information had been shared with him that convinced him TikTok was a national security threat. “My opinion, leaving that briefing, has not changed at all,” Mr LaLota said.

“This idea that we’re going to ban, essentially, entrepreneurs, small business owners, the main way how young people actually communicate with each other, is to me insane,” Mr Garcia said.

AP