Lawmakers’ new push to restrict the operations of TikTok’s owner ByteDance is expected to reach a floor vote in the House as soon as Wednesday.
The Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act would force the China-based ByteDance to divest TikTok or face a ban of the popular app in the U.S.
Fresh action against the China-based ByteDance from Congress comes alongside new alarms from the U.S. intelligence community about China’s use of the popular app to manipulate Americans.
The intelligence community’s annual threat assessment published Monday explicitly called out TikTok in its warning about China’s global covert influence operations to support the Chinese Communist Party.
“China is demonstrating a higher degree of sophistication in its influence activity, including experimenting with generative AI,” the threat assessment said. “TikTok accounts run by a PRC propaganda arm reportedly targeted candidates from both political parties during the U.S. midterm election cycle in 2022.”
Intelligence community chiefs are meeting with House lawmakers on Capitol Hill on Tuesday to discuss national security threats, and federal officials will reportedly discuss challenges involving TikTok with lawmakers behind closed doors afterward.
Federal officials provided a classified briefing to lawmakers in recent weeks that discussed TikTok before the House Energy and Commerce Committee reviewed the new legislation to restrict the app’s China-based ownership.
House lawmakers moved with uncommon haste on the bill, introducing the legislation and advancing it through the House Energy and Commerce Committee last week.
House Speaker Mike Johnson signaled he thinks the bill could reach a final vote on Wednesday, according to Punchbowl News, though several obstacles remain ahead.
Senators’ appetite for cracking down on TikTok has not matched their House colleagues. The Senate’s previous efforts to empower federal officials to curtail TikTok’s operations have stalled, including those shepherded by Sen. Mark Warner, Virginia Democrat.
Mr. Warner, the Senate Intelligence Committee chairman, has sounded pessimistic in recent weeks and months about the chances of passing legislation before the November election that yields new limits on TikTok.
Authors of the new House legislation are hoping Mr. Warner emerges as a key ally to get their bill to the president’s desk. Rep. Mike Gallagher, Wisconsin Republican and a co-author of the House bill, said last week he had spoken with Mr. Warner about the bill.
TikTok vehemently opposes the legislation and has pushed its fans to lobby Congress not to pass the legislation.
Mr. Biden, whose reelection campaign has leveraged the app, told reporters on Friday that he will sign the bill into law if Congress passes it.
• This article is based in part on wire service reports.
• Ryan Lovelace can be reached at rlovelace@washingtontimes.com.
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