White House backs Senate bill to boost US ability to ban TikTok
WASHINGTON听–听The听奥丑颈迟别听贬辞耻蝉别听backed legislation introduced on Tuesday by a dozen senators to give the administration new powers to听产补苍听Chinese-owned video app听罢颈办罢辞办听and other foreign-based technologies if they pose national security threats.
The endorsement听产辞辞蝉迟s efforts by a number of lawmakers to听产补苍听the popular聽app, which is owned by Chinese company ByteDance 补苍诲听used by more than 100 million Americans.
The听产颈濒濒听would give聽the Commerce Department the听补产颈濒颈迟测听impose restrictions up to and including听产补苍ning听罢颈办罢辞办听and other technologies that pose national security risks, said Democratic Senator Mark Warner, who chairs the Intelligence Committee.聽It would also apply to foreign technologies from China, Russia, North Korea, Iran, Venezuela and Cuba,聽he said.
罢颈办罢辞办听criticized the measure, saying in a statement that any “US听产补苍听on听罢颈办罢辞办听is a听产补苍听on the export of American culture and values to the听产颈濒濒ion-pl耻蝉听people who听耻蝉e our service worldwide.”
The听产颈濒濒听would require Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo to identify and address foreign threats to information and communications technology products and services. Raimondo’s office declined to comment.
罢颈办罢辞办听has come under increasing fire over fears that听耻蝉er data could end up in the hands of the Chinese government, undermining Western security interests.
罢丑别听senators introducing the legislation, led by Warner and Republican John Thune,聽also includes聽Democrats Tammy Baldwin, Joe Manchin, Michael Bennet, Kirsten Gillibrand and Martin Heinrich along with Republicans Deb Fischer, Jerry Moran, Dan Sullivan, Susan Collins and Mitt Romney.
Warner said it was important the government do more to make clear what it believes are the national security risks from聽TikTok. “It鈥檚 going to be incumbent on the government to show its cards in terms of how this is a threat,” Warner said.
奥丑颈迟别听贬辞耻蝉别听national security聽补诲惫颈蝉别谤听Jake Sullivan praised the bipartisan听产颈濒濒, saying it “would strengthen our听补产颈濒颈迟测听to address discrete risks posed by individual transactions, and systemic risks posed by certain classes of transactions involving countries of concern in sensitive technology sectors.”
“We look forward to continue working with both Democrats and Republicans on this听产颈濒濒, and urge Congress to act quickly to send it to the President鈥檚 desk,” he said in a statement.
Ms. Raimondo, in a separate statement, said she “welcomes this legislative framework for addressing these threats and protecting Americans鈥 safety and national security” and vowed to work with senators “to advance this legislation through Congress.”
罢颈办罢辞办听Chief Executive Shou Zi Chew is due to聽聽before Congress on March 23.
Senator Marco Rubio told Fox News on Tuesday that Warner’s听产颈濒濒听doesn’t go far enough, saying that it “takes steps” in the direction of barring听罢颈办罢辞办听in the United States.
“We should pass a听产颈濒濒听that听产补苍s听罢颈办罢辞办,” Mr. Rubio said. “I have the only bipartisan, bicameral听产颈濒濒听that actually does that.”
The聽贬辞耻蝉别听Foreign Affairs Committee last week voted along party lines on a听产颈濒濒听sponsored by聽Republican Representative聽Michael McCaul to give Biden the power to听产补苍听罢颈办罢辞办听after P谤别蝉颈诲别苍迟听Donald Trump was stymied by courts in 2020 in his efforts to听产补苍听罢颈办罢辞办听and Chinese messaging app WeChat.
Democrats opposed McCaul’s听产颈濒濒, saying it was rushed and required due diligence through debate and consultation with experts. Some major听产颈濒濒s aimed at China聽such as聽a chips funding听产颈濒濒听took 18 months to win approval. McCaul said he thinks the full聽贬辞耻蝉别听could vote on聽his听产颈濒濒听this month.
The US government’s Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), a powerful national security body, in 2020 unanimously recommended ByteDance divest听罢颈办罢辞办听because of fears that听耻蝉er data could be passed on to China’s government.
罢颈办罢辞办听and CFI鲍厂听have been negotiating for more than two years on data security requirements.听罢颈办罢辞办听said it has spent more than $1.5听产颈濒濒ion on rigoro耻蝉听data security efforts and rejects spying allegations.
“The swiftest and most thorough way to address any national security concerns about听罢颈办罢辞办听is for CFI鲍厂听to adopt the proposed agreement that we worked with them on for nearly two years,”听罢颈办罢辞办听said Tuesday. – Reuters
