The House of Representatives in the United States overwhelmingly and bipartisanly voted on Wednesday (13) to approve a bill that could lead to a nationwide ban on TikTok, a major challenge for one of the world’s most popular social media apps.
The condition for the app – used by about 170 million Americans – not to be banned is the separation from its Chinese parent company, ByteDance. It is still unclear what the future of the bill will be in the Senate. The vote in the House was 352 to 65, with 50 Democrats and 15 Republicans voting against.
Lawmakers supporting the bill argued that TikTok poses a national security threat because the Chinese government could use its intelligence laws against ByteDance, forcing it to hand over the data of U.S. app users.
Former President Donald Trump, a Republican presidential candidate who has previously advocated for banning the platform, stated that he was wrong about his position and is now against banning the company in the country.
On the other hand, Democratic candidate and current President Joe Biden said he would sign the bill if it reaches his desk.
The bill would give ByteDance about five months to sell TikTok.
TikTok has labeled the legislation as an attack on the constitutional right to free speech of its users. It launched a campaign within the app urging users to call representatives in Washington to oppose the bill. Several congressional offices reported being inundated with calls.
Source: CNN