Biden Signs TikTok Divestiture Bill as App Vows Court Challenge

President Joe Biden signed into law April 24 a wide-ranging national security bill that will, among other things, ban TikTok in the U.S. if China’s ByteDance doesn't sell the popular social media application to an entity that isn’t controlled by a foreign adversary (see 2404220041 and 2404180020).

However, TikTok said in a statement that the ban is an unconstitutional violation of freedom of speech and that it will challenge it in court. “We believe the facts and the law are clearly on our side, and we will ultimately prevail,” TikTok said.

Proponents of the divestiture requirement say the Chinese government can use TikTok to spread anti-U.S. propaganda and gain access to U.S. users' personal information. The new law gives ByteDance up to a year to complete the transaction: 270 days plus a possible 90-day extension by the president.

"We hope that TikTok will continue under new ownership, American or otherwise," Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., said. "It could be bought by a group from Britain, Canada, Brazil, France. It just needs to be no longer controlled by an adversary that is defined as an adversary in U.S. law."

Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass., argued that finding a new owner will be difficult. “Realistically, the actual chances of divestment in a year, if ever, are very small,” he said. “A TikTok sale would be one of the most complicated and expensive transactions in history, requiring months, if not years, of due diligence by both government and business actors.”

The new law will also sanction ports and refineries that receive and process Iranian oil; sanction fentanyl traffickers in Mexico and creators of fentanyl precursor chemicals in China; sanction foreign entities and governments that support Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad; authorize seizing frozen Russian central bank assets in the U.S. to help rebuild Ukraine; and provide military aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan.

The Senate approved the legislation late April 23 by a 79-18 vote, three days after the House passed the package by a 360-58 vote.