Update (1040ET): The House has passed the TikTok divestment bill by a vote of 352-65-1.
There were 15 Republicans who voted against it, and 50 Democrats.
It heads to the Senate next, where it already enjoys the support of Senate Intel Chair Mark Warner (D-VA) and Vice Chair Marco Rubio (R-FL).
“We were encouraged by today’s strong bipartisan vote… and look forward to working together to get this bill passed through the Senate and signed into law,” the pair said in a statement.
The top two senators on Senate Intel are now supporting the TikTok bill. That is a massive coup for lawmakers who want ByteDance to divest its holdings in TikTok https://t.co/d2zYuPSVsS
— Jake Sherman (@JakeSherman) March 13, 2024
As noted below, Biden says he’ll sign it if Congress can put it on his desk.
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Voting on the ‘TikTok’ bill has begun in the House, where it needs at least 2/3 of the vote to pass.
Prior to the vote, Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) took to the floor to rail against the bill, saying that “there’s some of us who feel that – intentionally, or unintentionally, this legislation to ban TikTok is actually a trojan horse.
“Some of us are concerned that there are First Amendment implications here. Americans have the right to view information, and don’t need to be protected by the government from information.”
Watch:
I’m currently on the floor managing the debate AGAINST the TikTok ban. This is my opening statement. Tune in to CSPAN live now for more. pic.twitter.com/yFqdYt4Pxd
— Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) March 13, 2024
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This week the House will hold a vote on a bipartisan bill that would prevent the social media app TikTok from appearing in app stores unless it’s able to be “fully divested” from Chinese-owned parent company ByteDance.
Following a unanimous vote on March 7, The Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act (H.R.7521) advanced from the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, and will now receive a full vote on Wednesday at around 10 a.m. according to Reuters.
The bill was introduced on March 5 by 19 members of the House Select Committee on the CCP – including Chair Mike Gallagher (R-WI) and ranking member Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL).
The bill also has the support of President Biden, who said “I’ll sign it” if Congress puts it on his desk.
Trojan Horse?
The rushed bill, seemingly out of nowhere – and just weeks after the Biden campaign made a TikTok account (and posted to it) on Super Bowl Sunday, has raised concerns over government overreach.
On Tuesday, Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) noted on X, “The so-called TikTok ban is a trojan horse” that would give the President the power to “ban WEB SITES,” not just apps.
“If you think this isn’t a Trojan horse and will only apply to TikTok and foreign-adversary social media companies, then contemplate why someone thought it was important to get a very specific exclusion for their internet based business written into the bill,” he added.
The so-called TikTok ban is a trojan horse.
The President will be given the power to ban WEB SITES, not just Apps.
The person breaking the new law is deemed to be the U.S. (or offshore) INTERNET HOSTING SERVICE or App Store, not the “foreign adversary.”https://t.co/iKtAQFGeQH pic.twitter.com/P26hEbzQrf
— Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) March 12, 2024
The bill states the definition of a foreign adversary as:
"a person subject to the direction or control of a foreign person or entity." pic.twitter.com/1qnyN5nFRV
— Patrick Webb (@RealPatrickWebb) March 13, 2024
Continue Reading: zerohedge.com
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