U.S. lawmakers seem to be exploring every possible way to ban TikTok nationwide. The latest push from Sen. Mark Warner (D., Virginia) today is bipartisan giving U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimond the power to ban his TikTok on personal devices to protect national security. He plans to lead more than 10 senators to introduce the bill. , Reuters reported.
The bill is called the Restriction of Security Threats that Endanger Information and Communications Technology (RESTRICT) Act. Republicans who see President Joe Biden’s stance on China as weak are blaming Congress for obstructing Congress to authorize Biden to quickly ban TikTok with the US Tech Adversarial Deterrence Act (DATA) Act. Unlike , Warner’s bill does not explicitly ban TikTok. CNBC reported that it said there was a risk of being forced into a corner. Instead, Warner has avoided drafting a bill on his TikTok. His office told Reuters that the RESTRICT Act “comprehensively addresses the ongoing threat posed by technology from foreign adversaries” and provides examples of technology that could be assessed as a threat. TikTok is cited as a
According to Warner, who is co-sponsoring the bill with Senator John Thune (R-SD), the RESTRICT Act is better than the Data Act. Not only from China, but also from Russia, North Korea, Iran, Venezuela and Cuba. This is intended to provide the United States with a systematic approach to enabling it to ban or ban new technology threats “on an as-needed basis.”
Reuters reports Democrats Tammy Baldwin (Wisconsin), Joe Manchin (WV Fisher (Nebraska), Jerry Moran (Kansas), Dan Sullivan (Alaska), Susan Collins (Maine), Mitt Romney, Utah: All senators will attend a press conference today at 3:00 p.m. ET to discuss the bill in detail.
Ars was unable to reach TikTok for comment. Warner’s office told Ars that details will be shared at a press conference this afternoon. [Update: TikTok spokesperson Brooke Oberwetter told Ars that TikTok has not yet reviewed the bill to comment on it specifically. Oberwetter said that TikTok appreciates that “some members of Congress remain willing to explore options for addressing national security concerns that don’t have the effect of censoring millions of Americans. A US ban on TikTok is a ban on the export of American culture and values to the billion-plus people who use our service worldwide.”]
Biden’s Support for RESTRICT Act
Biden and the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) have been negotiating with TikTok for years, trying to strike a deal that would allow TikTok to continue operating in the United States. Now, he appears to have either finished his negotiations with TikTok or is seeking legal authority to put more pressure on TikTok to finalize a deal.
The New York Times called the Biden administration’s apparent support for the Restriction Act a “strategic shift.” The White House has yet to endorse Warner’s bill, but sources told The Times that the Biden administration has provided feedback on the draft.
TikTok spokesperson Brooke Oberwetter told The Times that the Biden administration does not need additional authority to strike a deal with TikTok. Overwetter believes TikTok has been finalized “with the exception of some legal terms that are not material to national security.”
But in January, Warner told Axios that it was fairly certain the CFIUS deal would never go through.
“We tried to give the Biden administration time if there was a technical solution,” Warner told Axios. really hard. “
Because the court rejected a previous TikTok ban attempted under the Trump administration similar to the ban proposed by the Data Act, the Restrictions Act provides a new avenue for TikTok bans, so some members of both parties seems to agree with You can’t ask Biden to go beyond presidential powers.
It’s not yet clear what path the U.S. will take, but pressure is mounting for Mr. Biden to pick a path and find a way to keep TikTok in the U.S. or boost efforts to ban it. There seems to be
TikTok Rejects National Security Concerns
On March 23, TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew will testify before the House Energy and Commerce Committee.
In December, Oberwetter told Ars that the effort to ban TikTok was “politically motivated” and “does not advance the national security” of the United States. It has criticized it for taking “a piecemeal approach to national security and a broader set of industry issues such as data security, privacy and online harm.”
Some of Warner’s statements suggest that the Restrictions Act could address the latter’s criticisms, and Axios said optics would have been better had the US passed legislation like his bill. I am telling Warner said he could not support initiatives like the DATA Act because mentioning his China-based TikTok could lead to retaliation from China.
TikTok isn’t the only one to oppose Congress’ efforts to ban it. American Civil Liberties Union warns that banning his TikTok on personal devices violates Americans’ First Amendment rights, calling DATA Act unconstitutional, denies lawmakers I urge you to vote. A spokesperson for the ACLU told Ars that the organization is waiting to review Warner’s bill before deciding whether the RESTRICT law is unconstitutional.
