Donald Trump asked the US Supreme Court on Friday to suspend the law which threatens the social network TikTok with an imminent ban in the United States if its Chinese parent company does not sell it.
In a letter written by Donald Trump’s lawyers and addressed to the Supreme Court, the president-elect says he opposes this measure “at this stage” and wanting to resolve the situation once back at the White House, on January 20, the day after the potential entry into force of this ban.
“President Trump does not take a position on the merits of the dispute”they argue. “Instead, it urges the Court to suspend the effective date of entry into force of the measure, in order to allow the incoming administration to seek a negotiated outcome that would avoid a nationwide shutdown of TikTok”adds the letter.
In April, Congress voted overwhelmingly in favor of alaw requiring TikTok parent company ByteDance to sell its US operations before January 19, otherwise the application would be prohibited.
It aims to prevent the risks of espionage and manipulation by the Chinese authorities of TikTok users, which claims 170 million in the United States.
TikTok, which has repeatedly contested having transmitted information to the Chinese government, then turned to the Supreme Court, where a majority of conservative judges sit. The high court agreed in mid-December to study the request for examination of the constitutionality of this law on January 10.
“Unfortunate calendar”
Donald Trump recently met with TikTok boss Shou Zi Chew at his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida, and repeatedly expressed his support for the social network.
Initially opposed to the application, the future president now believes that it allowed him to reach a young audience and recently declared that he had a “weak” for her.
“President Trump is the only one with the expertise to make dealsthe mandate of the ballot boxes and the political will to negotiate a solution to save the platform while responding to the national security concerns expressed by the State”explains the letter from his lawyers, included in the file examined by the Supreme Court.
In their appeal, TikTok and ByteDance claim that “Congress passed a massive and unprecedented restriction on free speech”. They also note that the law is set to take effect on the eve of Donald Trump’s inauguration.
Just like the lawyers of the future president in their letter: “This unfortunate timeline hampers President Trump’s ability to manage U.S. foreign policy and seek an outcome that both protects national security and safeguards a social media platform that provides a popular service for 170 million Americans to exercise their fundamental First Amendment rights.” of the Constitution, relating to freedom of expression.
Trump reversed his position regarding TikTok
Donald Trump tried to ban TikTok in the summer of 2020during his first mandate, with executive decrees which were unsuccessful.
He has since changed his mind, calling on voters attached to the network to vote for him. The Republican sees TikTok as an alternative to Facebook and Instagram, Meta’s two platforms, which temporarily excluded him after the assault on the Capitol by his supporters on January 6, 2021.
In a separate letter, also included in the Supreme Court’s file, a coalition of associations – including the powerful civil rights organization ACLU – say they oppose the law, which they say encroaches on the freedom of expression of application users.
“Such a ban is unprecedented in our country and, if it goes into effect, will cause a far-reaching disruption in Americans’ ability to interact with the content and audiences of their choice online.”they write.
One of the solutions envisaged in the event of the law being maintained would be for ByteDance to resell its shares to non-Chinese investors, a possibility that the company has constantly rejected.
Especially since the purchase of the American activities, with its 170 million users, would be very expensive.
The AFP, among more than fifteen fact-checking organizations, is paid by TikTok in several countries to verify videos that potentially contain false information.
