Trump asks Supreme Court to suspend law for TikTok ban

US President Donald Trump

Trump asks Supreme Court to suspend law for TikTok ban

US President-elect Donald Trump filed a brief Friday urging the Supreme Court to pause a law that would ban TikTok the day before his January 20 inauguration if it is not sold by its Chinese owner ByteDance.

“In light of the novelty and difficulty of this case, the court should consider staying the statutory deadline to grant more breathing space to address these issues,” Trump’s legal team wrote, to give him “the opportunity to pursue a political resolution.”

Trump was fiercely opposed to TikTok during his 2017-21 first term, and tried in vain to ban the video app on national security grounds.

The Republican voiced concerns — echoed by political rivals — that the Chinese government might tap into US TikTok users’ data or manipulate what they see on the platform.

US officials had also voiced alarm over the popularity of the video-sharing app with young people, alleging that its parent company is subservient to Beijing and that the app is used to spread propaganda, claims denied by the company and the Chinese government.

Trump called for a US company to buy TikTok, with the government sharing in the sale price, and his successor Joe Biden went one stage further — signing a law to ban the app for the same reasons.

– Reversing course –

Trump has now, however, reversed course.

At a press conference last week, Trump said he has “a warm spot” for TikTok and that his administration would take a look at the app and the potential ban.

– ‘Unprecedented’ –

In the brief filed on Friday, Trump’s lawyer made it clear the president-elect did not take a position on the legal merits of the current case.

“President Trump takes no position on the underlying merits of this dispute,” John Sauer wrote in the amicus curiae — or “friend of the court” — brief.

“Instead, he respectfully requests that the court consider staying the act’s deadline for divestment of January 19, 2025, while it considers the merits of this case, thus permitting President Trump’s incoming Administration the opportunity to pursue a political resolution of the questions at issue in the case.”

A coalition of free speech groups — including the American Civil Liberties Union — also filed a separate brief to the Supreme Court opposing enforcement of the law, citing censorship concerns.

“Such a ban is unprecedented in our country and, if it goes into effect, will cause a far-reaching disruption in Americans’ ability to engage with the content and audiences of their choice online,” the rights groups’ filing read, in part.

The US apex court agreed last week to hear TikTok’s appeal against Biden’s move to force its owner to divest from it or face a ban.

With oral arguments scheduled for January 10, the case would have to be heard at a breakneck speed.

TikTok argues that the law, the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, violates its First Amendment free speech rights.

AFP, among more than a dozen other fact-checking organizations, is paid by TikTok in several countries to verify videos that potentially contain false information.