Two influential Republican lawmakers are introducing legislation to ban TikTok from use in the US, and criticized the Biden administration for insufficient action against the Chinese-owned social media platform.
(Bloomberg) — Two influential Republican lawmakers are introducing legislation to ban TikTok from use in the US, and criticized the Biden administration for insufficient action against the Chinese-owned social media platform.
“TikTok is a major threat to US national security,” Senator Marco Rubio and Representative Mike Gallagher wrote in a joint column in the Washington Post Thursday.
“This is why we’re introducing legislation which would ban TikTok and other social media companies that are effectively controlled by the CCP from operating in the United States,” they wrote, referring to the Chinese Communist Party.
Rubio is a potential candidate to lead the Senate Intelligence Committee, should Republicans win control of that chamber.
Gallagher is a member of the House Intelligence Committee.
“Congress needs to act against the TikTok threat before it’s too late,” the duo wrote.
President Joe Biden’s administration is currently weighing a proposal to allow TikTok to continue to operate in the US under its ownership of Chinese parent ByteDance Ltd.
The arrangement would route all US user traffic through servers maintained by Oracle Corp., with the US-based database giant auditing the app’s algorithms.
Rubio and Gallagher argued that the administration’s plan would “dangerously compromise national security” and allow other Chinese companies to start data-centric operations in the US with minimal oversight.
While the opinion piece was only signed by the Republican pair, lawmakers from both parties have expressed concern about TikTok, including the Senate Intelligence Committee’s current chairman, Democrat Mark Warner.
Read More: TikTok Deal Likely to Leave US Data Leaking to China
The Biden administration has made efforts in recent months to court TikTok influencers to get its message out on issues ranging from the Russian invasion of Ukraine to the midterm elections.
The app is banned on some government devices — including those used by Pentagon personnel — but there are no blanket restrictions across the government on using the platform on personal devices.
Republican lawmakers are already rolling out their priorities for the new Congress even as the count continues from Tuesday’s midterm elections.
Republicans are on track to gain a slim majority in the House, but a runoff election in Georgia next month may end up determining control of the Senate.
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