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The US Senate has passed legislation that would force ByteDance to sell TikTok within a year or face a national ban, sending the measure to President Joe Biden’s desk. He is expected to sign it.
The White House-backed legislation was approved as part of a broader national security package — combining Ukraine and Israel aid — that passed the House in a bipartisan vote over the weekend. Proponents of the TikTok measure say that the popular video app’s Chinese ownership poses a national security threat.
Tuesday’s Senate vote was 79-18.
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Under the measure, ByteDance would have up to 360 days to divest TikTok or face an effective ban within the US.
A TikTok spokesperson last week characterized the legislation as an assault on free speech, signaling a likely legal challenge on First Amendment grounds.
“It is unfortunate that the House of Representatives is using the cover of important foreign and humanitarian assistance to once again jam through a ban bill that would trample the free speech rights of 170 million Americans, devastate 7 million businesses, and shutter a platform that contributes $24 billion to the U.S. economy, annually,” the spokesperson said.
Bloomberg reported earlier this week that TikTok’s head of public policy told employees in a memo that the company would “move to the courts for a legal challenge” once the measure is signed into law.
The legislation represents a rare bipartisan achievement in Congress, where there is intense scrutiny of the Chinese government among members of both parties.
An earlier version of the legislation introduced by the House China select committee leaders, Republican Rep. Mike Gallagher and Democratic Rep.Raja Krishnamoorthi, would have forced a sale within 180 days; the adjustment to the bill helped it gain support from a key Democratic senator, Commerce Committee Chairwoman Maria Cantwell, who endorsed it last week.