The US House of Representatives is set to vote on a bill that would require Chinese owner ByteDance to sell a portion of its business within approximately six months
During a House of Representatives intelligence committee hearing, Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines stated that China could exploit the social media app TikTok to influence the 2024 US elections. Responding to Democratic Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi’s inquiry about the possibility of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) leveraging TikTok for election interference, Haines noted, “we cannot rule out that the CCP would use it.”
Lawmakers have expressed ongoing worries that the Chinese government might access user data or manipulate content on the app, potentially fueling political divisions in the United States.
Krishnamoorthi, the lead Democrat on the House select committee on China, along with the committee’s Republican chair Mike Gallagher, introduced a bill last week. The bill would require ByteDance, TikTok’s Chinese owner, to divest the short video app used by 170 million Americans within approximately six months.
The House is scheduled to vote on Wednesday under fast-track rules, which mandate that two-thirds of members must vote in favor for the measure to pass. TikTok, which asserts it has never shared and will not share US user data with the Chinese government, contends that the House bill effectively constitutes a ban. President Joe Biden indicated last week that he would sign the bill; however, given the app’s popularity, securing approval for legislation in both the House and Senate during an election year could be challenging. It remains uncertain whether China would approve any sale or if TikTok could be divested within six months.
In the 2024 annual threat assessment of the US Intelligence Community, released on Monday, it was reported that TikTok accounts operated by a Chinese government propaganda arm allegedly targeted candidates from both political parties during the 2022 US midterm election cycle. FBI Director Christopher Wray reiterated his view at the House hearing, stating that TikTok posed national security threats. “Americans need to consider whether they want to grant the Chinese government control over their data,” Wray remarked, cautioning that this could potentially “compromise their devices.”