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US Supreme Court upholds ban on TikTok

By Mitchell Miller

For all the latest developments in Congress, follow WTOP Capitol Hill correspondent Mitchell Miller at Today on the Hill.

The Supreme Court on Friday upheld a federal ban on TikTok, which is set to go into effect Sunday, unless it is sold by its Chinese parent company.

There was no dissent among the high court justices.

The ban was approved by Congress and signed into law by President Joe Biden amid national security concerns linked to TikTok’s Chinese ownership.

TikTok is operated by the Chinese company ByteDance, which mounted a legal challenge to the ban, arguing it unfairly restricted free speech.

U.S. Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., has supported the ban. But he said he still wants the 170 million Americans who enjoy TikTok to continue to be able to use the popular video app.

“I don’t want TikTok to go away,” he said.

What he does want is for the Chinese company that owns TikTok to sell it.

Warner, who is now the vice chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said he would be “wide open” to a 90-day extension for TikTok, so another owner could be found and vetted.

Will President-elect Donald Trump step in?

Warner said the threat of the ban could finally force serious bidders for TikTok to come forward.

He noted that about 40% of the investors in ByteDance are American.

“Let’s just transfer the control to a non-Chinese entity,” Warner said.

He said a 90-day extension could help with that, though he adds that it can’t be “an extension to nowhere.”

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer also said Thursday he would support an extension.

“It’s clear that more time is needed to find an American buyer and not disrupt the lives and livelihoods of millions of Americans and so many influencers who have built up a good network of followers,” Schumer said, speaking on the Senate floor.

President-elect Donald Trump has indicated an interest in signing an executive order that might somehow delay the immediate impact of the TikTok ban, though additional legal questions surround that possibility.

Trump initially supported a ban on TikTok during his first term. But he later changed his position and has spoken on behalf of TikTok, noting the popularity of the app.

TikTok’s CEO, Shou Zi Chew, plans to attend a rally for Trump at Capital One Arena in D.C. on Sunday. He also plans to be in attendance at Trump’s inauguration on Monday.

US military builds up the largest force of warships and aircraft in the Middle East in decades

By The Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Pentagon is building up the largest force of American warships and aircraft in the Middle East in decades, including two aircraft carrier strike groups, as President Donald Trump warns of possible military action against Iran if talks over its nuclear program fall apart. “It’s proven to be, over the years, not easy to make a meaningful deal with Iran, and we have to make a meaningful deal," Trump said last week. "Otherwise bad things happen." Trump likely will have a host of military options, which could include surgical attacks on Iran's air defenses or strikes focused on Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, experts say. But they warn that Iran could retaliate in ways it hadn't following attacks last year by the U.S. or Israel, potentially risking American lives and sparking a regional war. “It will be very hard for the Trump administration to do a one-and-done kind of attack in Iran this time around,” said Ali Vaez, an Iran expert at the International Crisis Group. “Because the Iranians would respond in a way that would make all-out conflict inevitable.”
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