House panel to vote on nationwide TikTok ban
Christopher Hutton
Video Embed
The Foreign Affairs Committee will vote on a bill to ban TikTok within the United States, the panel’s chairman said, the most serious legislative threat yet to the massive social media platform that has become controversial for its ties to China.
Rep. Kevin McCaul (R-TX) said he would have the committee vote on the ban next month, according to Bloomberg.
SCHIFF USES TIKTOK TO SPEAK ON HIS REMOVAL FROM INTELLIGENCE COMMITTEE
The vote would come months after the House passed a ban on installing the app onto federal devices and as the White House negotiates a deal to allow the app to operate while mitigating the risks affiliated with its Chinese owner.
“The concern is that this app gives the Chinese government a back door into our phones,” McCaul said in an interview.
The Republican representative said he is skeptical that the White House’s proposal will be sufficient to protect U.S. security interests. He is also wary of other proposed bills, such as those proposed by Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-WI) or Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO), which he claims would be blocked on free speech grounds. McCaul also said he is working on legislation that will combine multiple proposals for banning TikTok into a single bill and address any constitutional issues.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
TikTok has been talking with the White House for several months about implementing a $1.5 billion proposal to protect U.S. user data. It is discussing creating systems for monitoring its algorithm, continuing to run all U.S. TikTok traffic through the Oracle server system, and hiring monitors to ensure the China-based parent company ByteDance is not manipulating the app.
The House and several state governments have passed bans on TikTok being installed on government-owned devices.