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Accessibility statementSkip to main content Democracy Dies in Darkness SubscribeSign in Advertisement Democracy Dies in Darkness BusinessEconomyEconomic PolicyPersonal FinanceWorkTechnologyBusiness of Climate BusinessEconomyEconomic PolicyPersonal FinanceWorkTechnologyBusiness of Climate Economic Policy TRUMP EXPECTED TO TRY TO HALT TIKTOK BAN, ALLIES SAY The president-elect promised to ‘save’ the social media app, which faces a deadline early next year to find a non-China-based owner. 7 min 33 A TikTok sign hangs on their building in Culver City, California, in March. (Damian Dovarganes/AP) By Jeff Stein , Drew Harwell and Jacob Bogage November 12, 2024 at 10:53 a.m. EST President-elect Donald Trump is expected to try to halt a potential U.S. ban of TikTok next year, after he promised on the campaign trail to save the popular social media app if he won, according to people familiar with his views on the matter. Get a curated selection of 10 of our best stories in your inbox every weekend. The video-sharing app faces a January deadline to find a new owner not based in China or lose access to U.S. users, under a law passed in April with bipartisan support. “He appreciates the breadth and reach of TikTok, which he used masterfully along with podcasts and new media entrants to win,” said Kellyanne Conway, who ran Trump’s first presidential campaign, served in the White House and remains close to him and now also advocates for TikTok. “There are many ways to hold China to account outside alienating 180 million U.S. users each month. Trump recognized early on that Democrats are the party of bans — gas-powered cars, menthol cigarettes, vapes, plastic straws and TikTok — and to let them own that draconian, anti-personal choice space.” Advertisement Story continues below advertisement The president-elect has not yet announced a decision on if, or how to proceed, but some advisers expect him to intervene on TikTok’s behalf if necessary — including Conway and three others, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations. Trump promised during the campaign to protect the app even though he also signed an executive order in his first term that would have effectively banned it: “I’m gonna save TikTok,” he said in one of his first videos on the app this June. The deadline in the law for TikTok’s China-based owner ByteDance to divest is Jan. 19 — the day before Trump’s inauguration. But the firm has challenged the ban as unconstitutional, and even if TikTok doesn’t win, the litigation could push the question into Trump’s second term, giving him more latitude. Skip to end of carousel ELECTION 2024 arrow leftarrow right Donald Trump has won the presidential election. Follow live updates. Catch up on the presidential election results and voter turnout for 2024. Here’s the inside story of Trump’s remarkable comeback to win the White House and what a second Trump presidency could mean for America. Republicans are projected to take control of the Senate. The House has not been called. Sign up for The Campaign Moment, reporter Aaron Blake’s guide to what you really need to know about the election. 1/4 End of carousel The law, called the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, grants the president the power to extend the divestment deadline by 90 days if the administration sees that “significant progress” has been made toward a sale. If the deadline comes after Trump takes office and he wanted to halt the ban outright, Trump could push Congress to repeal the law or encourage his attorney general to refrain from enforcing it, according to Alan Rozenshtein, a former national-security adviser to the Justice Department. Advertisement Story continues below advertisement If Trump does try to halt the ban, it would amount to a significant policy shift for an incoming president who has spared almost no opportunity to attack China. Toward the end of his first term, Trump presided over a federal investigation into ByteDance that also sought to orchestrate TikTok’s sale. The Trump transition team did not immediately respond to a request for comment. TikTok declined to comment. ByteDance recognized months ago that a Trump victory was its best chance to retain control of TikTok, said one person familiar with the firm’s internal discussions, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss private talks. “The outcome of the election puts him in an even better place than he was already trending. And that’s what the company is hoping for,” the person said. Story continues below advertisement Halting the ban without formal action might be tricky, Rozenshtein said. The law is enforced against app stores offered by tech giants including Apple and Google — subjecting them to fines if they continue to offer TikTok — and those internet giants may be leery of disobeying a law based on the whims of an inconsistent president. Advertisement “If you’re the general counsel of Apple and [chief executive] Tim Cook turns to you and says, ‘Can we host TikTok on our app stores,’ you’re in a very awkward position if the answer is ‘Trump said we could’ in a random tweet,” Rozenshtein said. “How much do you trust Trump? If he changes his mind, are they retroactively liable? Do they really want to be in that position?” Repealing the law outright would leave TikTok under ByteDance’s ownership and could reignite concerns in Washington, including among top Republicans, over China’s potential influence on the app. But ByteDance in 2022 offered the Biden administration an extensive proposal, known as Project Texas, that would grant the U.S. government enormous sway over its workforce and technical underpinnings in exchange for continued operation in the United States, which the administration declined. Story continues below advertisement ByteDance has previously said the proposal is still on the table, and the Trump administration could agree to it as part of a potential compromise. Advertisement On Capitol Hill, lawmakers in both parties continue to argue that TikTok represents a national-security threat to Americans. They fear its popularity could open the door for the Chinese government to collect U.S. users’ data and manipulate the videos that Americans see in their feeds — a charge that TikTok strenuously denies. Share this articleShare Trump’s early picks for national security posts in his second term include China hawks who have supported the TikTok ban. His choice for secretary of state, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Florida), wrote in The Washington Post in 2022 that TikTok gave the Chinese government “a unique ability to monitor” American teens and that “we must ban this potential spyware before it is too late.” Trump’s pick for secretary of homeland security, South Dakota Gov. Kristi L. Noem (R), was the first governor to order TikTok banned on state-owned devices. Story continues below advertisement Trump shared some of those concerns during his first term in office, even signing an executive order in 2020 that declared TikTok a “national emergency” — and warned it could enable China “to track the locations of Federal employees and contractors, build dossiers of personal information for blackmail, and conduct corporate espionage.” His administration even tried to foster a last-minute sale of TikTok in a process led by then-Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, but it never came to fruition — and Mnuchin later declared his interest in acquiring pieces of the company. Advertisement But Trump has tempered his views in recent months, breaking with his party as he emerges as one of the app’s biggest defenders on the right. The incoming president has argued that a ban would only help TikTok’s social-media rival, Facebook, who he has said “cheated in the [2020] Election” and is a “true Enemy of the People.” After debating whether Trump should join TikTok this spring, his campaign ultimately staffed a small TikTok team to help play him up as “the biggest celebrity entertainer … on the planet.” By the time he declared victory this week, the incoming president had amassed more than 14 million followers on the app. Story continues below advertisement “For all of those who want to save TikTok in America, vote for Trump. The other side is closing it up, but I’m now a big star on TikTok,” he said in a video monologue this September posted on his own social media site, Truth Social. Advertisement Trump has told allies that he is impressed by his popularity on TikTok and recognized it to be a major political asset over the summer, according to two people familiar with his attitude toward the app. Others have told Trump that the national security establishment “unfairly targeted” TikTok with allegations of Chinese state influence, one person involved with those conversations said, adding that the message appeared to personally resonate with Trump because it mirrors Trump’s own views about investigations into his personal and business activities. Support for a TikTok ban has crumbled in the United States, including among Republicans, falling from 50 percent last year to 32 percent this summer, the Pew Research Center said in September. Tony Romm contributed to this report. TRUMP’S SECOND PRESIDENCY The latest: Follow live updates on the transition to Donald Trump’s second presidency and return to the White House. Here’s the inside story of Trump’s remarkable comeback to defeat Kamala Harris. What we know: We’re tracking Trump’s incoming administration. So far, Trump named Susie Wiles to serve as White House chief of staff, and Gov. Kristi Noem will be homeland security secretary. Trump also picked Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-New York) to be U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, and Tom Homan will serve as “border czar.” What could happen: Here’s what a second Trump presidency could mean for America and key global issues. Also, see how women feel about another Trump term and how Project 2025 could reshape America under a Trump presidency. Share 33 Comments Election 2024 HAND CURATED * Live updates: Trump picks South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem as homeland security secretary 1 hour ago Live updates: Trump picks South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem as homeland security secretary 1 hour ago * How Donald Trump found his footing and fought his way back to the White House November 6, 2024 How Donald Trump found his footing and fought his way back to the White House November 6, 2024 * 2024 turnout is near the 2020 record. See how each state compares. 2 hours ago 2024 turnout is near the 2020 record. See how each state compares. 2 hours ago View 3 more stories NewsletterWednesdays The Color of Money Advice on how to save, spend and talk about your money for the short and long term from Michelle Singletary. Sign up Recommended for you Recommended by Subscribe to comment and get the full experience. 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