After the Supreme Court upheld a law that requires the app to be blocked if its Chinese parent company does not sell it to a US company by Sunday, former US President Donald Trump announced that he would make a decision on whether to implement a TikTok ban in the “not too distant future”.
In a statement released on Friday, all nine Supreme Court justices agreed that the Congress’s order to sell the app last year did not violate the constitutional protection of free speech.
The ban is set to take effect on the last day of President Joe Biden’s term in office. A White House representative told various US media outlets on Friday that the decision on whether to implement the ban would be left to Trump, who is set to be inaugurated on Monday.
“The Supreme Court’s decision was expected, and everyone must respect it” Trump wrote on his social media platform, Truth Social. “My decision on TikTok will be made in the not too distant future, but I need time to assess the situation. Stay tuned!”
Trump, who has acknowledged the app’s help in winning young voters in November, is considering whether to delay the ban’s implementation with an executive order, according to the Washington Post on Wednesday.
During his first term, Trump attempted to ban TikTok citing its Chinese owners as a security risk. However, during his last presidential campaign, he changed his stance and said, “For all those who want to save TikTok in America, Trump is for it. The other side is catching up, but I’m now a big star on TikTok.”
TikTok has repeatedly denied allegations of sharing user data with the Chinese government. The Chinese Foreign Ministry has responded to existing bans on the app for government employees by accusing the US of “abusing state power to suppress foreign companies”.
Trump met with Shou Zi Chew, the CEO of TikTok, at his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida last month. Shou is set to attend Trump’s inauguration on Monday, along with Chinese Vice President Han Zheng.