Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) on Monday backed legislative efforts to ban TikTok unless Chinese-owned parent company ByteDance sells its stake in the popular video sharing platform.
"America’s greatest strategic rival is threatening our security right here on U.S. soil in tens of millions of American homes," he said in a floor speech.
"This is a matter that deserves Congress’ urgent attention," McConnell added. "And I’ll support commonsense, bipartisan steps to take one of Beijing’s favorite tools of coercion and espionage off the table."
Last month, the House overwhelmingly voted to support the legislation, 352-65, but its fate in the Senate has been uncertain, with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer noncommittal about a vote.
"Requiring the divestment of Beijing-influenced entities from TikTok would land squarely within established constitutional precedent. And it would begin to turn back the tide of an enormous threat to America’s children and to our nation’s prospects in the defining competition of the 21st century,” McConnell said.
He also dismissed concerns about whether such legislation would violate the First Amendment.
“No matter how loudly TikTok’s apologists claim that reining in PRC influence violates the First Amendment, the question we’ll face is about conduct, not content,” he said.
“I take a backseat to no one when it comes to protecting First Amendment rights. I’ve firmly defended Americans’ rights to even the most noxious forms of free speech, like flag-burning,” he added. “But there’s a serious difference between the views Americans might express on TikTok… and the actions taken by a platform that’s beholden to our foremost strategic competitor.
Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), a fierce critic of the effort, argued last month the House vote would not secure the nation.
To the contrary, "it’s a disturbing gift of unprecedented authority to President Biden and the Surveillance State that threatens the very core of American digital innovation and free expression,” Paul said on X.
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