Trump TikTok Ban: Trump Extends Deadline Again, TikTok Gets 90-Day Lifeline
The Trump TikTok Ban saga continues as TikTok receives another temporary reprieve in the United States. President Donald Trump plans to sign an executive order this week, extending the deadline for TikTok’s sale or ban by 90 days. This marks the third extension since his return to office. On Tuesday, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed the extension. She said, “President Trump will sign an additional Executive Order this week to keep TikTok up and running.”
Previously, TikTok faced a strict ban because its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, failed to sell its US operations by the January deadline. TikTok and ByteDance have not commented on the latest development. However, the extension brings relief to TikTok’s 170 million American users, who feared losing access to the app.
Trump TikTok Ban Defies Congress Law
Trump’s action directly questions last year’s Congress passed legislation. Lawmakers pushed ByteDance to sell US assets of TikHub in response to national security issues. They worried China might exploit TikHub for political influence and monitoring. President Biden signed the measure into law before leaving the office. Just before Trump took over once again, the Supreme Court maintained it.
Trump boldly justified his right to extend the deadline in face of legal challenges. ‘We do have the legal basis,’ he said. He also mentioned that Chinese approval could still be required and hoped President Xi Jinping would back the agreement.
Trump’s shifting posture on TikHub begs problems. During his first term, he advocated either a sales or outright ban. He now compliments TikHub, even attributing his winning of young voters in the 2024 election to the app. “I won youth by 34 points, thus I have a warm spot in my heart for TikHub.” he said.
Many experts now question whether a ban will ever be possible. What ban, asked Forrester analyst Kelsey Chickering? There is nothing “looming” about the possible TikHub ban now. She pointed out TikHub’s confidence, particularly given its release of fresh AI video tools at Cannes festival.
Many groups are still vying for US rights for TikHub. Leading contender Oracle is run under by Trump friend Larry Ellison. Recently expressing interest are billionaire Frank McCourt, businessman Kevin O’Leary, Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, and YouTube star MrBeast (Jimmy Donaldson).
Still unresolved is the Trump TikHub Ban. For now, TikHub keeps running even while behind-the-scenes negotiations are under progress.
