US senators have alleged that TikTok, owned by the Chinese Communist Party, has interfered in elections of various countries, including India, and called for extending the deadline for a ban on the platform in the US.
A group of lawmakers has called for extending the deadline to shut it down. Participating in a debate on TikTok, the lawmakers also applauded India's ban on the social media platform which is highly popular among teenagers and youths.
As per a law signed by President Joe Biden a year ago, TikTok faces a ban from US app stores unless the Chinese parent company ByteDance Ltd. divests its American arm by Sunday, January 19.
"TikTok meddles in the politics of other countries by amplifying divisive content in for instance, Israel, India and of course America. Don't forget that TikTok harvests a vast trove of user data including name age, email address, phone number, credit card number, facial features, voice prints, keystrokes photos, videos and viewing habits," Senator Tom Cotton said on the Senate floor on Wednesday.
"We have seen TikTok's interference in elections elsewhere around the world. Most recently in Romania. The European Commission just opened an investigation into TikTok's failure to limit election interference in Romania's election and that has caused all sorts of disruption in that country," Senator Pete Ricketts said.
"India has banned TikTok for the very same reason that they are seeing the push of Chinese propaganda that slants on their news media the same way we see it here in America," Ricketts said on the Senate floor.
There are 170 million TikTok users in the US. Senators Ron Wyden, Edward Markey, Cory Booker, and Indian American Congressman Ro Khanna, -- all Democrats -- have joined in introducing bipartisan, bicameral legislation that would delay the January 19 deadline by an additional 270 days when ByteDance must sell TikTok or face a ban.
"The rushed divestment of TikTok is a huge giveaway to Donald Trump and his cronies, who are poised to scoop up a massive social media company and turn it into another partisan mouthpiece," Wyden said.
"Extending the deadline to sell TikTok will allow Congress to consider better ways to mitigate threats from China, courts to review the law, and additional bidders to make proposals to acquire TikTok with more time for public scrutiny," he added.
"A ban on TikTok violates the free speech of 170 million Americans and hurts the livelihoods of creators and small business owners who use the app," said Khanna.
"We need laws to protect Americans' data, but banning TikTok is not the answer," Khanna said.
"The TikTok ban was rushed through without sufficient consideration of the profound consequences it would have on the 170 million Americans who use the platform," said Senator Markey.
"Today, TikTok is a space where users share critical resources during emergencies such as the Los Angeles wildfires, earn money to cover groceries and medical care and build community in challenging times. The Extend the TikTok Deadline Act is a straightforward, one-sentence bill designed to give Congress the time needed to fully assess the implications of this ban," he said.
"Tens of millions of Americans use TikTok for entertainment, business, and social networking, including myself," said Senator Booker. "Americans should not be shut off from freely expressing themselves on the platforms they choose. I do believe that ByteDance should divest from TikTok, but it should be given sufficient time to carry out a sale," he said.
Senators Markey and Rand Paul, along with Ro Khanna, recently submitted a bipartisan, bicameral amicus brief urging the US Supreme Court to reverse the DC Circuit Court's decision in TikTok Inc. v. Garland, which upheld the TikTok ban established under the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday that TikTok CEO Shou Chew will attend Donald Trump's inauguration as the 47th President of the United States on January 20.
Incoming National Security Advisor, Mike Waltz in an interview with a news channel indicated that there might be an extension of the deadline.
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