Hawley touts Pelosi’s support for banning TikTok from government devices

Sen. Josh Hawley is trumpeting word that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is joining his push to bar TikTok from federal government devices. 

The Senate passed by unanimous consent a proposal to restrict the China-linked social media platform for government officials earlier this week, and Mrs. Pelosi is unexpectedly supporting the Senate’s push that Mr. Hawley helped lead. 

“How about that,” Mr. Hawley, Missouri Republican, said Friday in a Twitter post with a screenshot of a news report saying Mrs. Pelosi favored the restriction.

Mrs. Pelosi, California Democrat, said she favors adding the proposed TikTok restrictions to an end-of-year spending bill, according to reports.

The decision to support the ban comes after Mrs. Pelosi appeared noncommittal on Thursday. She told reporters then she had not reviewed the Senate legislation but she would consult the Biden administration.

“Banning TikTok on government devices is an easy call,” Mr. Hawley said on Twitter. 

TikTok said it is time for the Biden administration to end its review of the platform for national security concerns, an examination that began during the Trump administration.

“Politicians with national security concerns should encourage the administration to conclude its national security review of TikTok,” spokesperson Brooke Oberwetter said in a statement.

Ms. Oberwetter previously said that Mr. Hawley’s proposal “does nothing to advance U.S. national security interests.”