Washington, D.C. – President Donald Trump has once again delayed the enforcement of a bipartisan law that would effectively ban TikTok in the U.S..
The law, passed by Congress last year due to national security concerns, requires TikTok’s Chinese parent company, ByteDance, to sever its ties with the popular video-sharing app by January 19 or face being cut off from U.S. app stores and web hosting services.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed on Tuesday that Trump will sign an executive order delaying the law’s enforcement for another 90 days, marking the third delay in its implementation since Trump’s inauguration.
“As he has said many times, President Trump does not want TikTok to go dark,” Leavitt said. “This extension will last 90 days, which the Administration will spend working to ensure this deal is closed so that the American people can continue to use TikTok with the assurance that their data is safe and secure.”
The TikTok Deal and Its Challenges
The Trump administration had been negotiating a deal that would have forced TikTok’s U.S. operations to become a new company, with majority American ownership. This agreement was intended to address national security concerns about the Chinese government’s access to TikTok’s user data.
However, those talks were complicated after Trump imposed sweeping tariffs on China, and ByteDance informed the White House that China would not approve the deal until trade and tariff issues were resolved.
Despite those challenges, Trump expressed optimism on Tuesday, saying, “I think President Xi [Jinping] will ultimately approve it,” referring to Chinese President Xi Jinping. He also reiterated his support for TikTok, referencing his popularity on the app and noting, “I was No. 1 on TikTok in its history. Can you believe that?”
The Legal and Political Backdrop
Last year, Congress passed the law mandating ByteDance to sever its relationship with TikTok, citing concerns that the app could be used by the Chinese government to spy on Americans and collect their personal data.
The Supreme Court upheld the law just before it was set to take effect. Despite this, the Trump administration has repeatedly delayed its enforcement, and there has been no action from Apple or Google to remove the app from U.S. stores until Trump issued the first executive order.
The lack of action has led to frustration in Congress, with lawmakers such as Senator Josh Hawley calling for the law to be enforced. “I think we ought to enforce the law,” Hawley said in early June.
Republican Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa also expressed concerns about the delays, saying, “I just want finality.” He added that he wanted clarity on how long the issue would continue without any action from the White House.
Geopolitical Implications
TikTok has been a central issue in the broader U.S.-China relations, particularly as the Trump administration sought to counter China’s influence in various sectors.
The recent trade talks between the U.S. and China, which resulted in a framework deal to ease the trade war, did not include any mention of TikTok, though U.S. officials have continued to express concerns about the app’s security risks.
Trump’s repeated delays in enforcing the law are fueling uncertainty in both Congress and the tech industry, with TikTok users and stakeholders left wondering about the app’s future in the U.S. The situation remains unresolved as the 90-day extension nears its expiration.