President Trump signs executive order delaying TikTok ban

President Trump signed an executive order granting TikTok a 75-day extension to comply with a law requiring the sale or ban of the platform.

He says that during this period, the United States will not implement the law passed by Congress last year and signed by former President Joe Biden.

The order was among a series of directives signed by Trump on Monday evening.

Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office, he said: “I tell you what. Every rich person has called me about TikTok.”

When asked by a reporter why he had changed his mind since trying to ban TikTok in 2020, Trump replied: “Because I have to use it.”

He raised the possibility of a joint venture, saying he was seeking a 50-50 partnership between “the United States” and its Chinese owner ByteDance. But he didn’t give more details on how it might work.

Trump also said potential new tariffs on China could depend on a deal over ownership of the platform. If Beijing rejected a deal, “it would be somewhat of a hostile act,” he said.

Saturday evening, Chinese app no ​​longer works for US usersafter the entry into force of a law prohibiting it for reasons of national security.

It resumed services to its 170 million users in the United States after Trump said he would issue an executive order to grant a reprieve from enforcement when he takes office.

But as of Monday, it was still not available for download on the Apple and Google app stores.

The Biden administration had argued that TikTok could be used by China as a tool for espionage and political manipulation.

Opponents of a ban have cited free speech as a reason to keep the platform open.

TikTok parent company ByteDance previously ignored a law requiring it to sell its U.S. operations to avoid a ban.

The law was upheld by the Supreme Court on Friday. and took effect Sunday, but the Biden White House said it would leave implementation of the law to the new administration given the timeline.

Trump supported banning the platform during his first term.

The newly signed executive order puts him at odds with many members of Congress from his own party.

In an article on fines.

Cotton said liability could come not only from the Justice Department, “but also from securities law, shareholder suits and state attorneys general. Think about that.”

TikTok Chief Executive Shou Zi Chew attended Trump’s inauguration on Monday alongside other big tech bosses, including Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg and Jeff Bezos.

Earlier on Monday, YouTube star MrBeast posted a TikTok video of himself, apparently from a private jet, on his way to make a formal offer to buy the short-video platform.

The message gave no further details about the offer, only that it would be “crazy.”

Other companies, billionaires and celebrities have expressed interest in buying TikTok, including X owner Musk and an investor in the TV show Shark Tank, Kevin O’Leary.

Additional reporting by Michelle Fleury