The White House created Tik Tok official account just a few weeks before deadline which President Donald Trump extended for Chinese owned app will be sold to a non-Chinese buyer or face ban in the US
The @whitehouse account launched on Tuesday evening and had gained more than 80,000 followers as of Wednesday morning. The Trump campaign used TikTok account, @realdonaldtrumpwhich now has more than 15 million subscribers, ahead of last year's presidential election. Trump aides said last year called it TikTok “the most successful launch in political history” and called it its “secret sauce.”
“I am your voice,” Trump declares in the first video posted on the White House account, which features footage edited together and the caption: “America, we are BACK! What happened to TikTok?
“The Trump Administration is committed to bringing the historic successes President Trump has achieved to the American people with the widest possible audience and platforms,” White House press secretary Caroline Leavitt said in a statement. Reuters on Tuesday. “President Trump’s message dominated TikTok during his presidential campaign, and we’re excited to build on those successes and communicate in a way no other administration has done before.”
Federal employees not allowed to download the app on work devices, with some exceptions under a law passed under the Biden administration.
Trump's evolution on TikTok
The Trump administration tried to reach a deal to sell TikTok, which is owned by the Chinese company ByteDance. non-Chinese buyer until September 17. The application was initially banned in the US after President Joe Biden signed bipartisan legislation last year requiring ByteDance to abandon the app over national security concerns. TikTok argues that the US ban violates the First Amendment, although the Supreme Court has upheld the ban.
On the evening of January 18, the application was remote from US app stores and users were greeted with a message that read: “Sorry, TikTok is not available right now. The US has passed a law banning TikTok. Unfortunately, this means you can't use TikTok yet.”
A few hours later, the app was up and running again under Trump's name. announced that he extended the deadline for the sale of ByteDance. The message on the app read: “Thank you for your patience and support. Thanks to President Trump's efforts, TikTok is back in the US!” CEO of TikTok Tzu Chu Showattended Trump's inauguration praised Trump for the extension in a video message.
Read more: Why Trump turned on TikTok
President since then extended the deadline several more times, although selling before the current September deadline looks doubtful. Trump said In June, a deal with “a group of very wealthy people” was close, subject to Beijing's approval. Trump also has recognized what's his tariffs in China may have made sales difficult.
Trump himself had called Tik Tok threat to national security during his first term, and the ban on the app was driven by bipartisan push.
“Distribution in the United States of mobile applications developed and owned by companies in [China] continues to threaten the national security, foreign policy and economy of the United States,” he said. decree signed by Trump in 2020. “The United States must take aggressive action against TikTok owners to protect our national security.”
