The text of the Congressional bill to ban TikTok (H. R. 7521) contains language that appears to allow the US government to ban any app, website, or “augmented or immersive technology application” that it claims is “directly or indirectly” operated by a foreign adversary.
The bill grants the government power to prohibit “foreign adversary controlled applications” from being distributed, maintained, or updated in the United States. Furthermore, it defines “foreign adversary controlled” as a “covered company” (including a website, app, etc.) that is operated by people who are “domiciled in, is headquartered in, has its principal place of business in, or is organized under the laws of a foreign adversary country” (g)(2)(A).
In turn, the bill appears to grant the president powers to determine when to prosecute a company that allegedly fits this definition.
On Wednesday, independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. pointed to this fine print of the document, highlighting a relevant section.
The so-called “Tik Tok ban” is actually a Trojan Horse that could allow the President to ban any website or app merely by asserting that it is “controlled or guided” by a foreign adversary. https://t.co/hMLgw7i0Ik
— Robert F. Kennedy Jr (@RobertKennedyJr) March 13, 2024
As Valuetainment previously reported, Congress is considering legislation that would give ByteDance, the China-based firm that owns TikTok, six months to divest its ownership of the platform or risk having the app banned in the United States. The lawmakers are citing the ability of the Chinese government to harvest user data as a national security concern, and they have obtained political backing from the Biden administration.
The House of Representatives passed the bill on Wednesday by a vote of 352-65. But now the bill is being passed on to the Senate, which is not necessarily poised to vote in agreement—but not poised to voted it down swiftly, either.
Meanwhile, pro-free speech video streaming company Rumble has offered to buy or be part of the purchasing negotiations of the app should ByteDance be forced to sell it under the new bill. Along with its offer to buy the platform, Rumble announced the launch of its new cloud computing service, which it said could serve as the new home of TikTok data, making it securely placed within the borders of the United States.
Shane Devine is a writer covering politics, economics, and culture for Valuetainment. Follow Shane on X (Twitter).
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