WASHINGTON: US presidential nominee Donald Trump said on Monday that TikTok was a national security concern, but that banning the popular app would harm some children while strengthening Meta Platforms’ Facebook, which the Republican has heavily attacked.
Trump underlined his worries as senators consider a plan this week that would give TikTok owner ByteDance about six months to sell the popular short video app.
The US House of Representatives is scheduled to vote on legislation on Wednesday that would give China’s ByteDance a short deadline to sell the popular TikTok short video app, which is used by 170 million Americans. The House is voting under fast-track procedures, which need two-thirds of members to vote “yes” for the proposal to be passed. The FBI, Justice Department, and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence are to have a secret briefing for House members, according to two sources. At a hearing on Monday, FBI Director Christopher Wray reaffirmed his worries about TikTok.
According to the United States Intelligence Community’s 2024 Annual Threat Assessment, “TikTok accounts run by a PRC propaganda arm reportedly targeted candidates from both political parties during the U.S. midterm election cycle in 2022.”
The Justice Department revealed its security worries about TikTok in a paper released last week, which was originally reported by Reuters.
“I’m not looking to double Facebook’s size,” Trump told CNBC on Monday. “And if you prohibit TikTok, Facebook and others, particularly Facebook, would benefit greatly. And I believe Facebook has been really dishonest.
Trump recently met with investor Jeff Yass, whose business Susquehanna International Group owns a stake in ByteDance, he acknowledged on CNBC. Trump said they did not discuss TikTok.
On Monday, Meta Platforms finished down 4.4% at $483.59 a share. The corporation has declined to comment.
Trump earlier chastised the corporation now known as Meta Platforms for deactivating his Facebook and Instagram accounts after deleting two of his postings during the Jan. 6, 2021, riot in the US Capitol. His accounts were restored in February 2023.
Trump also stated that a TikTok ban may affect young people. “There are a lot of young kids on TikTok who will go crazy without it,” he went on to say. “There’s a lot of good and there’s a lot of bad with TikTok.”
The law would give ByteDance 165 days to divest TikTok. If it did not do so, Apple, Alphabet’s Google, and others would be unable to lawfully sell TikTok or Web hosting services to ByteDance-controlled applications.
In 2020, Trump attempted to prohibit TikTok and Chinese-owned WeChat, but the courts thwarted his efforts.
The app is popular, and passing legislation in both the House and Senate during an election year may be challenging. Last month, the Biden re-election campaign joined TikTok.
The campaign for Donald Trump hasn’t joined TikTok.
