USA TODAY: Trump considers extending TikTok deadline. Is third time a charm?
Will the third time be the charm for TikTok's future? With another extension deadline in two weeks, the social media platform's future lies in the hands of President Donald Trump.
In January, TikTok went dark for 12 hours in the United States when China-based ByteDance failed to divest the app’s U.S. assets, as required by law. Since coming into office on Jan. 20, Trump issued two executive orders to extend the ban’s deadline, hoping to acquire the short-form video app used by 170 million Americans. But so far, a deal has yet to be struck. The next deadline is June 19.
A plan had been in the works that would spin off TikTok’s American operation into a new firm owned and operated by U.S. investors, but was put on hold, according to Reuters, after China would not approve it following Trump’s announcements of steep tariffs on its goods.
This, too, is unclear. Under federal legislation that put the TikTok ban in place, the president can implement a 90-day extension on the deadline to sell. But Trump didn’t take this route in January or April. Instead, he signed executive orders delaying the ban by 75 days. If Trump wishes to sign another executive order ahead of the June 19 deadline, he can.
“The deadline for Trump to follow the law passed 135 days ago. It is shocking that a bipartisan-backed law, signed by the former president and upheld by the Supreme Court, is being treated like a mere suggestion by the White House,” said Stephen Kent, Consumer Choice Center media director, in a news release.