On Friday, President-elect Donald Trump submitted a request to the Supreme Court seeking a delay in the potential ban on TikTok. He aims to facilitate a “political resolution” regarding the app before any decisive actions are taken.
This request follows the submission of conflicting briefs to the court by TikTok and the Biden administration. TikTok’s team argued for the court to invalidate a law that could result in the platform being banned by January 19, while the government contended that this statute is critical to addressing national security issues.
“President Trump does not take a position on the fundamental issues of this case. Instead, he respectfully requests that the Court consider postponing the Act’s divestment deadline of January 19, 2025, while it evaluates the merits of the case,” stated Trump’s amicus brief, which was drafted by D. John Sauer, his appointed solicitor general.
This legal filing underscores Trump’s active involvement in national issues even before officially taking office. The Republican president-elect has already engaged in discussions with international leaders concerning his tariff initiatives and has recently participated in negotiations about federal government funding, advocating for a collaborative approach instead of endorsing a pre-existing proposal.
As he builds his administration, Trump has been meeting with foreign dignitaries and business leaders at his Mar-a-Lago estate, including a recent encounter with TikTok CEO Shou Chew.
Notably, Trump has altered his viewpoint on TikTok; he previously sought to ban the app during his first term due to national security apprehensions. However, during his 2024 presidential campaign, he has begun leveraging TikTok to connect with younger voters, particularly young men, by generating content aimed at going viral.
Earlier this year, Trump acknowledged that he still perceives potential national security risks associated with TikTok but has voiced opposition to an outright prohibition of the platform.
The recent legal developments are set against the backdrop of oral arguments scheduled for January 10, which will consider whether the law mandating TikTok to sever ties with its parent company in China infringes upon the First Amendment by unlawfully limiting free speech. This legislation was introduced by President Joe Biden in April, following strong bipartisan support in Congress, leading TikTok and its parent company ByteDance to challenge it legally.
A panel of three federal judges from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit recently upheld the statute unanimously, prompting TikTok to escalate its case to the Supreme Court.
Trump’s brief indicated his current opposition to a TikTok ban, emphasizing a preference for resolving the matter through political dialogue once he takes office.
In their brief to the Supreme Court, attorneys for TikTok and ByteDance argued that the federal appeals court erred in its ruling, basing its decision on speculative risks concerning potential Chinese influence over TikTok’s operations in the U.S.
The Biden administration has asserted in court that TikTok poses a national security threat due to its connections with China, claiming that Chinese authorities could compel ByteDance to share information about U.S. users or manipulate the platform to affect information flow.
However, TikTok’s legal filing highlights that the government concedes it lacks evidence of any past attempts by China to exert such control, indicating that U.S. concerns are primarily based on hypothetical future scenarios.
In its filing on Friday, the Biden administration noted that TikTok operates in conjunction with ByteDance and utilizes proprietary technology developed in China, thereby presenting inherent risks within its corporate structure.
