US President Donald Trump has tasked Vice President J.D. Vance and National Security Advisor Michael Waltz with overseeing the potential sale of TikTok’s US operations. Citing sources in the White House and Congress, Punchbowl News reported today.
TikTok under pressure: The rescue effort
The operator of TikTok, a social network for sharing short videos, is the Chinese company ByteDance. Shortly after taking office, Trump suspended for 75 days the law banning TikTok on U.S. soil if the Chinese owner does not sell a majority stake to a government-approved bidder. The ordered sale is a result of US authorities’ concerns that TikTok is a threat to national security.
According to the site’s source, Vance is tasked with “working out a deal to rescue TikTok.” Waltz and the National Security Council are in charge of the national security-related aspects of any deal, the site added. If ByteDance does not sell the stake or the buyer is not approved by the government, the ban will go into effect again. Trump has already said he could imagine the US government acquiring a half stake in the company directly.
TikTok sale by Musk? The future of the app in the US is uncertain
Bloomberg also reported a few weeks ago that Chinese officials were discussing the possibility of selling TikTok’s US network operations to Trump ally Elon Musk.
TikTok says it has more than 170 million users in the US. The law requires internet providers and app stores such as Google Play and the App Store to block downloads and updates if it goes into effect. In addition, the company says apps in the US depend on local infrastructure, which the law also makes problematic.
Source: Reuters
