So with Donald Trump returning to The White House for a second term, does that mean that the TikTok sell-off bill will be revoked, and that TikTok will be able to remain active in the U.S.?
On the campaign trail, Trump repeatedly vowed that he would “save TikTok” if he was returned to office, while also noting that he’s become “a big star” in the app. Trump used this as a means to boost his appeal to younger voters, which may have helped him win more votes. But now, Trump could be faced with some tough decisions if he actually wants to keep the platform active.
To be clear, the current TikTok sell-off bill will not ban TikTok from America, as such, but it will force it into U.S. ownership if it wants to remain active in the region. The Chinese Government has vowed to oppose the sell-off bill, and any efforts to force a Chinese company into U.S. ownership, which, in effect, could see TikTok removed from the U.S. either way, but it’s not technically a ban in itself.
Still, Trump has sought to use the TikTok sell-off push as another vote-winning strategy. And now, we’ll see if he can actually repeal the TikTok sale bill, which has already been approved by the Senate.
Which, of course, he can. As President, Trump will be able to pull the bill and negate the Senate’s decision, though that would also be a significant undermining of the Senate majority, and it’s unclear whether he would actually go to that length to hold up his pledge.
Yet, even so, Trump’s victory would have been music to the ears to TikTok management, which has already launched expensive legal action against the U.S. Government to oppose the bill. Now, its path to remaining in the U.S., a key market for the app, is looking much more promising, but then again…
Remember, it was Trump who originally proposed a ban on TikTok back in 2020, though Trump’s reasoning for such was different to the current cybersecurity concerns.
In the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak, which Trump blamed on China, the then President vowed to ban TikTok as a form of punishment against China for the virus.
So it wasn’t that Trump was concerned about potential spying and influence efforts enacted by the CCP, Trump had more specific, personal motivations for attacking the app.
Which he seems to have forgiven now, and as Trump notes, he’s also been using TikTok as a means to connect with younger voters, improving his personal opinion of the app.
So, essentially, it’s impossible for us to know what exactly Trump’s thinking about the platform, and whether the top cybersecurity professionals will be able to sway his opinion on it, as they did the Senate.
Maybe, as part of his handover briefings, Trump too will be convinced to uphold the TikTok ban, but either way, there’s now a new opportunity for the company’s top brass and top lobbyists to start re-pitching their case to keep TikTok in the nation.
There’s still some time before Trump actually returns to office, but the outlook suddenly got a lot brighter for TikTok’s future.
