President-elect Donald Trump suggested on Sunday that TikTok might continue operating in the United States, at least temporarily, citing the platform’s significant role in his presidential campaign. Speaking to a conservative audience at AmericaFest in Phoenix, Arizona, Trump acknowledged the app’s influence, noting the billions of views his campaign content garnered on TikTok.
Trump’s remarks marked one of his clearest indications of opposition to a potential ban or forced divestment of TikTok from the U.S. market. This comes in the wake of an April decision by the U.S. Senate to require TikTok’s Chinese parent company, ByteDance, to divest the app due to national security concerns. The legislation reflected widespread fears about the app’s ties to China and its potential for misuse of user data.
TikTok’s parent company has challenged the legislation in court, and the case is set to be reviewed by the U.S. Supreme Court. If ByteDance does not prevail and no divestment occurs, TikTok could face a ban in the U.S. as early as January 19, just one day before Trump’s inauguration.
At AmericaFest, Trump underscored TikTok’s importance to his campaign, describing how his team presented him with data showcasing record-breaking engagement. “They brought me a chart, and it was a record, and it was so beautiful to see,” he told the audience. “As I looked at it, I said, ‘Maybe we gotta keep this sucker around for a little while.’”
Trump’s comments followed a meeting with TikTok’s CEO earlier in the week. At a subsequent news conference, Trump expressed a “warm spot” for the platform, attributing it to his campaign’s success in engaging users through the app. However, he did not clarify how he might address the divestiture order passed overwhelmingly by the Senate.
The U.S. Justice Department maintains that TikTok’s Chinese ownership poses a national security risk, echoing the stance of most lawmakers. Critics argue that Chinese control could enable unauthorized data access or influence operations. TikTok has countered these allegations, stating that its content moderation and recommendation systems for U.S. users are handled domestically, with data stored on servers managed by Oracle Corp in the United States.
As the Supreme Court prepares to deliberate on the matter, the future of TikTok in the U.S. hangs in the balance, leaving users and policymakers awaiting clarity on whether the app will remain accessible.
