House panel unanimously approves bill that could ban TikTok


A powerful House committee advanced a bill on Thursday that could lead to a nationwide ban against TikTok on all electronic devices, renewing lawmakers’ challenge to one of the world’s most popular social media apps and highlighting unresolved fears that TikTok may pose a Chinese government spying risk.

The measure that sailed unanimously through the House Energy and Commerce Committee would prohibit TikTok from US app stores unless the social media platform — used by roughly 170 million Americans — is quickly spun off from its China-linked parent company, ByteDance.

If enacted, the bill would give ByteDance 165 days, or a little more than five months, to sell TikTok. If not divested by that date, it would be illegal for app store operators such as Apple and Google to make it available for download. The bill also contemplates similar prohibitions for other apps “controlled by foreign adversary companies.”

It’s the most aggressive legislation targeting TikTok to come out of a congressional committee since company CEO Shou Chew testified to lawmakers last year that the app poses no threat to Americans.

“Today, we will take the first step in creating long-overdue laws to protect Americans from the threat posed by apps controlled by our adversaries, and to send a very strong message that the US will always stand up for our values and freedom,” said Washington Republican Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, the panel’s chair.

New Jersey Rep. Frank Pallone, its ranking Democrat, compared the bill to prior efforts to regulate the US airwaves, citing testimony from national security officials from a closed-door hearing earlier Thursday.

“I take the concerns raised by the intelligence community this morning very seriously,” Pallone said. “They have asked Congress to give them more authority to act in these narrowly defined situations, and I believe that this bill will do that.”

The bill was introduced with some bipartisan support earlier this week by Wisconsin Republican Rep. Mike Gallagher, who chairs a House select committee on China, and the ranking member of that committee, Illinois Democratic Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi. The legislation also has the support of the White House and House Speaker Mike Johnson.

Now that it has cleared the committee, the TikTok legislation will head to a floor vote next week, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise said in a post on X Thursday evening. Its fate is less clear in the Senate, where there is no companion bill and the Democratic chair of the Senate Commerce Committee, Washington Sen. Maria Cantwell, has made no firm commitment to advance the proposal.

“I will be talking to my Senate and House colleagues to try to find a path forward that is constitutional and protects civil liberties,” Cantwell said in a statement to CNN.

House lawmakers voted unanimously in the same session Thursday to advance a second bill, one that would limit US companies’ ability to sell Americans’ personal information to foreign adversaries.

TikTok is digital fentanyl and Congress, Biden must act before it's too late


The national security threat posed by TikTok is enormous and the clock is ticking

TikTok is a national security threat to the United States of America. The social media juggernaut is a Chinese Communist Party-controlled program used to surveil more than 150 million Americans – both young and old. TikTok is Chinese spyware that allows the Chinese Communist Party to manipulate the minds of young Americans at will and compromises the privacy of millions of Americans.

It is essentially digital fentanyl, a 21st century technological weapon. The app is so potent and addictive that TikTok is banned within China. The version of TikTok approved for use in China is watered down, free of an algorithm set for addiction, and focused on educational purposes. Meanwhile, TikTok is the most popular social media for American teenagers, allowing the CCP to sow discord and feed the American people communist propaganda through their phones.

While TikTok's data and algorithm is kept secret, the anecdotal evidence is clear: TikTok pushes content aligned with the CCP’s agenda. It’s no coincidence that TikTok was flooded with pro-Hamas and antisemitic videos in the aftermath of the October 7th attack. Given who holds the purse strings, it’s unsurprising that videos on the Uyghur genocide or Tiananmen Square are virtually impossible to find on TikTok.

Ultimately, the threat which TikTok poses to the security and privacy of Americans must be addressed before it's too late.

Fortunately, we’re not starting from square one. The Trump-Pence administration took historic action recognizing that China is the greatest economic and strategic threat facing the United States. We also set the stage for sweeping action to address TikTok as the national security and privacy threat that it is. In 2020, our administration issued an executive order intended to force the CCP to sell TikTok.

The era of appeasing the Chinese Communist Party is over. The Trump-Pence administration was the first to confront the threat posed by TikTok, and I will never falter in my commitment to confronting China at home and abroad.

Unfortunately, the Biden-Harris administration revoked that executive order soon after taking office, as they sought to roll back virtually everything done by our administration, regardless of merit. Just as it ignored Chinese spy balloons flying overhead, the Biden Administration has done nothing to address Chinese spy programs on our devices.

While Congress pushed Biden to enact legislation banning TikTok on official government devices, that hasn’t stopped his campaign from posting away on its own official TikTok account. Even still, I am grateful that Biden’s use of the app hasn't kept him from backing the bill moving through the House this week (H.R. 7521) that forces the sale of TikTok. I just wish it hadn't required the upcoming election for him to take the threat seriously.

The Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, expertly navigated through the Energy and Commerce Committee (50-0) by Chairwoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers, is carefully crafted. While a TikTok ban would violate the First Amendment (something that could never be countenanced), forcing TikTok to divest from the Chinese Community Party—as this bill is designed to do—is just common sense.

Today, every politician likes to talk tough on China. Unfortunately, too many politicians talk a big game but crack under the pressure of wealthy donors or personal grudges—including my former running mate. When lobbyists for a company controlled by the Chinese Communist Party can turn a former president against his own political legacy, we should all be concerned.

The era of appeasing the Chinese Communist Party is over. The Trump-Pence administration was the first to confront the threat posed by TikTok, and I will never falter in my commitment to confronting China at home and abroad.

Allowing TikTok to continue operating in the United States while under CCP control is simply unacceptable. We would never have let Russia run the nightly news during the Cold War, and we certainly can’t let China do the same now.

Allowing TikTok to continue to spew CCP-sanctioned propaganda poisoning the minds of American children is just wrong. Enough is enough.

Congress should pass legislation forcing the sale of TikTok as soon as possible, and President Biden must immediately sign it into law.

i Temu zabraniti.

Trump says a TikTok ban would only help 'enemy of the people' Facebook


Former US President Donald Trump has criticised a congressional bill to force TikTok's parent company to sell the app or see it banned in the US.

Mr Trump, who attempted to ban TikTok in 2020 while in the White House, said the proposal would give unfair advantages to Facebook owner Meta.

Lawmakers are debating a measure that would force TikTok parent company ByteDance to sell it by 30 September.

President Joe Biden has said he will sign the bill if it passes.

"Without TikTok, you can make Facebook bigger, and I consider Facebook to be an enemy of the people," Mr Trump told NBC on Monday.

Asked about app's security, the Republican presidential candidate said "there's a lot of good and there's a lot of bad" with the social media platform.

"There are a lot of people on TikTok that love it. There are a lot of young kids on TikTok who will go crazy without it," Mr Trump added.

Mr Trump said in his NBC interview that he agreed with those who see TikTok as a national security threat, but argued that Facebook was also a threat to the US government.

"I think Facebook has been very bad for our country, especially when it comes to elections," Mr Trump added.

Shares in Facebook's parent company Meta fell sharply after the attack, dropping more than 4% on a day when stocks were generally flat. Shares in its smaller social media rival, Snap, were also lower.

Mr Trump's comments offered a preview of the heightened political scrutiny social media firms are likely to face this year as the presidential election in November draws near.

TikTok last faced a serious campaign for a sale or ban in 2020, the last time Mr Trump and Mr Biden were vying for the White House.

At the time, American officials said they feared that data from ByteDance - a Chinese tech giant - could fall into the hands of the Chinese government.

TikTok executives deny sharing any data with Beijing, and maintain they would refuse to do so if asked.

Jewish Federations praise US House for passing TikTok Ban bill, citing antisemitism on app


JFNA said it urges the Senate to pass the bill and send it to President Biden, who indicated he will sign it.

Jewish Federations of North America praised the US House of Representatives for overwhelmingly passing a bill on Wednesday that would give TikTok's Chinese owner ByteDance about six months to divest the US assets of the short-video app, or face a ban.

According to a statement from JFNA, research shows a spike in antisemitism on TikTok more than any other social network.

TikTok has helped fuel a horrific spike in antisemitism, JFNA President and CEO Eric Fingerhut said in the statement, and Wednesday's vote showed bipartisan support ensuring TikTok cannot push hateful messages.

The bill passed 352-65, with bipartisan support, but it faces a more uncertain path in the Senate where some favor a different approach to regulating foreign-owned apps posing security concerns. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said the Senate will review the legislation.

TikTok users who use the app for over 20 minutes a day are 17% more likely to hold antisemitic or anti-Israel views, compared to 6% on Instagram and 2% on X/Twitter, JFNA said.

Jewish Federations: TikTok is beholden to the Chinese government

"TikTok’s parent company is beholden to the Chinese government, which has squarely positioned itself against Israel since October 7th. China has filled its state-controlled media and social media channels with antisemitic and anti-Israel rhetoric," JFNA's statement said.

"The bill is NOT a ban on TikTok, nor does it restrict a user’s First Amendment rights. But the harm TikTok is doing cannot be ignored. "

JFNA said it urges the Senate to pass the bill and send it to President Biden, who indicated he will sign it.

"A society that can’t control the virus of antisemitism from spreading through a social media platform will soon find itself facing existential threats to the very fabric of civic life," JFNA said.

The fate of TikTok, used by about 170 million Americans, has become a major issue in Washington. Lawmakers said their offices had received large volumes of calls from teen-age TikTok users who oppose the legislation, with the volume of complaints at times exceeding the number of calls seeking a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.

"This process was secret and the bill was jammed through for one reason: it's a ban," a TikTok spokesperson said after the vote, adding that they hoped the Senate will "consider the facts, listen to their constituents," when considering the bill.

The measure is the latest in a series of moves in Washington to respond to US national security concerns about China, from connected vehicles to advanced artificial intelligence chips to cranes at US ports.

"This is a critical national security issue. The Senate must take this up and pass it," No. 2 House Republican Steve Scalise said on social media platform X.

Senate Commerce Committee chair Maria Cantwell, who will play an important role in the Senate's next move, said she wants legislation "that could hold up in court," and is considering a separate bill, but is not sure what her next step is.

The vote comes just over a week since the bill was proposed following one public hearing with little debate, and after action in Congress had stalled for more than a year. Last month, President Joe Biden's re-election campaign joined TikTok, raising hopes among TikTok officials that legislation was unlikely this year.

The House Energy and Commerce Committee last week voted 50-0 in favor of the bill, setting it up for a vote before the full House.

Ovakve zabrane su do sada bile rezervirane za Kinu, jedno vrijeme i Tursku a
da će to doći u USA nije bilo zamislivo.