Trump will ‘put measures in place’ to save TikTok from ‘going dark’, top adviser says

“As long as a viable deal is on the table. Essentially that buys President Trump time to keep TikTok going,” Waltz said.

Waltz, a Florida Republican, stated that Trump would intervene if the US Supreme Court upholds a law banning TikTok, which is used by over 170 million Americans monthly unless it is sold by 19 January.

In its final week, the Biden administration is also exploring ways to prevent TikTok from suddenly disappearing, reports NBC News.

Chinese owner ByteDance has announced plans to shut off the app for its 170 million US users by Sunday.

The New York Times reported on Thursday that Trump is considering an executive order that would allow TikTok to continue operating despite a pending legal ban until new owners are found. It was unclear whether Trump has the authority to do so, given the legal divestiture requirements imposed by Congress.

A group of US lawmakers is also pushing for a 270-day extension, warning that a ban could harm Americans who rely on TikTok for their livelihood.

A spokesperson for the Trump transition, Karoline Leavitt, said, “President Trump has repeatedly expressed his desire to save TikTok, and there’s no better deal maker than Donald Trump.”

According to reports by Reuters, President Joe Biden has no plans to intervene to block the ban in his final days in office if the US Supreme Court fails to act. Biden is legally unable to intervene unless ByteDance presents a credible plan to divest TikTok. The law signed in April mandates a ban on new TikTok downloads on Apple or Google app stores if ByteDance fails to divest the site.

Users who have already downloaded TikTok would theoretically still be able to use the app, but the law also bars US companies from providing services to enable the distribution, maintenance, or updating of it once the ban begins.

The president can issue a one-time, 90-day delay to the ban if he certifies to Congress that significant progress has been made and that binding legal agreements are in place to allow a complete divestiture within three months. Separately, TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew is scheduled to attend the US presidential inauguration on January 20 and sit among high-profile guests invited by Trump, a source told Reuters.

The US Supreme Court is currently deciding whether to uphold the law and allow TikTok to be banned on Sunday, overturn the law, or pause the law to give the court more time to make a decision.

Privately held ByteDance is about 60% owned by institutional investors such as BlackRock and General Atlantic, while its founders and employees own 20% each. It has more than 7,000 employees in the United States.

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