U.S. President-elect Donald Trump on Sunday suggested he may allow TikTok to continue its operations in the United States for a bit longer, signaling a possible reprieve for the popular video-sharing app.
Speaking at an event hosted by the conservative organization Turning Point USA in Phoenix, Arizona, Trump acknowledged that TikTok may have played a role in reaching key voters during the presidential election. He expressed that the app had generated “billions and billions of views,” hinting at its influence and potential value.
“I think we’re going to have to start thinking because, you know, we did go on TikTok, and we had a great response with billions of views, billions and billions of views,” Trump told the crowd at AmericaFest, an annual gathering organized by the conservative group Turning Point.
“They brought me a chart, and it was a record, and it was so beautiful to see, and as I looked at it, I said, ‘Maybe we gotta keep this sucker around for a little while’,” he added, suggesting a possible shift in his administration’s stance toward the app.
Meanwhile, on Wednesday, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to review a request from TikTok and its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, to block a law that would require the sale of the app by January 19 or face a ban on national security grounds.
The nation’s highest court is set to hear arguments on January 10 regarding whether the law unconstitutionally limits freedom of speech, potentially breaching the First Amendment.
The court’s decision came two days after TikTok filed a petition for an injunction against the law. The company argued that the potential ban would shutter one of America’s most popular speech platforms the day before a presidential inauguration and “silence the speech of Applicants and the many Americans who use the platform to communicate about politics, commerce, arts, and other matters of public concern.”
In April, U.S. President Joe Biden enacted the law that gives ByteDance only 270 days to sell TikTok, citing national security concerns. If the company fails to comply, the law will require app store operators such as Apple and Google to remove TikTok from their platforms.
In May, TikTok sued the U.S. government to block the potential ban, which has drawn widespread criticism from various sectors.
Earlier this month, the U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington, D.C., dismissed TikTok’s claim that the ban is unconstitutional, paving the way for the Supreme Court to take up the issue.
The developments around TikTok’s future in the United States continue to unfold, with significant implications for users, content creators, and international business relations.
Reference(s):
cgtn.com
