TikTok is resuming services for its 170 million users in the United States after President-elect Donald Trump said he would issue an executive order to give the app a reprieve when he takes office on Monday.
On Saturday evening, the Chinese-owned app stopped working for American users, after a law banning it for national security reasons came into effect.
But after Trump promised on Sunday to delay implementation of the law and allow more time to reach an agreement, TikTok said it was in the process of “restoring service.”
She thanked the new president for “providing the necessary clarity and assurances” and said the company would work with Trump “on a long-term solution that keeps TikTok in the United States.”
Posting on Truth Social, the social media platform he owns, Trump said on Sunday: “I’m asking companies not to allow TikTok to remain dark! I will issue an executive order on Monday to extend the period of time before the law’s ban takes effect, so we can make a deal to protect our national security.”
Bytedance, TikTok’s parent company, previously ignored a law requiring it to sell its US operations to avoid a ban. the law The Supreme Court upheld the decision on Friday and it took effect on Sunday.
It is unclear what legal authority Trump will have to delay implementation of the law already in place. But she expected that his government would not implement the ban if he issued an executive order.
For its part, President Joe Biden’s administration has already said that it will not implement the law in its final hours in office and will instead allow the process to continue under the incoming Trump administration.
But TikTok pulled its services anyway on Saturday evening, before quickly regaining access on Sunday.
The short video platform is very popular among millions of users in the United States. It has also proven to be a valuable tool for American political campaigns to reach young voters.
Trump She previously supported banning TikTokBut he recently announced a “warm spot” for the app, touting the billions of views he says his videos attracted on the platform during last year’s presidential campaign.
Under the law passed last April, the American version of the app had to be removed from app stores and web hosting services if its Chinese owner, ByteDance, did not sell its operations in the United States.
TikTok argued before the Supreme Court that the law violates freedom of expression protections for its users in the country.
The law was approved with support from both Republicans and Democrats in Congress, and was unanimously upheld by Supreme Court justices earlier this week.
This case reveals a disagreement over key national security issues between the president-elect and members of his party. His choice for Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, has vocally supported the ban.
“TikTok has expanded the power and influence of the Chinese Communist Party into our nation, right under our noses,” he said last April.
After Trump intervened on Sunday morning, Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Tom Cotton, a Republican senator from Arkansas, disagreed with Trump by saying that any company that helped TikTok stay online would be breaking the law.
“Any company that hosts, distributes, services, or otherwise facilitates the communist-controlled TikTok could face hundreds of billions of dollars in devastating liability under the law, not just from the Department of Justice, but also under the Securities Act, shareholder lawsuits, And state prosecutors.” he wrote on social media.