Deferral of TikTok ban sought by Trump

CNN reports that the U.S. Supreme Court has been sought by President-elect Donald Trump to delay the implementation of a ban on TikTok poised to be effective just a day prior to his inauguration on Jan. 20.

Postponing the TikTok prohibition would enable the incoming administration to enter negotiations that would address national security concerns and keep First Amendment rights without banning the short-form video platform from operating in the U.S., according to Trump’s “friend-of-the-court” brief.

“There are valid concerns that the act may set a dangerous global precedent by exercising the extraordinary power to shut down an entire social-media platform based, in large part, on concerns about disfavored speech on that platform,” said the brief.

Trump’s brief comes shortly after the Biden administration and former government officials from both sides of the aisle called for the preservation of the ban given the national security threat posed by TikTok’s association with China.

China “could covertly manipulate the platform to advance its geopolitical interests and harm the United States — by, for example, sowing discord and disinformation during a crisis,” said the Biden administration to the Supreme Court.