Trump engages in a gathering with TikTok's CEO at Mar-a-Lago, while the platform seeks the Supreme Court's intervention in their dispute involving a federal restriction.
Trump engages in a gathering with TikTok's CEO at Mar-a-Lago, while the platform seeks the Supreme Court's intervention in their dispute involving a federal restriction.
The scheduled encounter with TikTok CEO Shou Chew is rumored to be his first meeting with Trump since the latter's election victory in November, as told to CNN by another source. Chew, who reportedly visited Trump's Florida resort in December, has been attempting to meet with Trump since his election, and this is just another high-profile meeting the incoming president is hosting with influential tech company executives.
Only a few hours prior to this, TikTok pleaded with the conservative Supreme Court to interfere in the ongoing legal dispute regarding a controversial law mandating the sale of the platform to a new, non-Chinese owner, or its potential ban in the United States. This law is scheduled to be enforced on January 19.
Following the January deadline, US app stores and internet services may face heavy fines for continuing to host TikTok if it is not sold. The president, under the legislation, has the power to issue a one-time extension of this deadline.
Trump hinted at a possible change in approach towards the popular platform on Monday, but he hasn't specified the details of this new approach.
“You know, I have a soft spot for TikTok because I won the youth vote by a 34-point margin, and some say that TikTok played a part in it,” Trump said during a broad press conference – his first since the election. (However, Trump actually lost the 18-29-year-old demographic to Vice President Kamala Harris by 11 points, according to CNN's exit polls for 2024.)
The platform is edging closer to a potential ban within a few weeks if it fails to convince Chine's parent company, ByteDance, to sell TikTok and find a buyer. ByteDance has previously indicated that it has no intention of selling the platform.
TikTok Seeks Supreme Court Intervention
TikTok's emergency appeal to the Supreme Court places the justices right in the middle of a heated conflict between Congress, which has raised concerns about Chinese control over the app, and the platform's users and executives, who believe the ban infringes upon their First Amendment rights.
An appellate court unanimously upheld the ban in a ruling earlier this month, asserting that the government had a legitimate interest in regulating the platform within the US. If the Supreme Court doesn't intervene, the ban will come into force only a day before Trump takes office.
The appeal reached the high court's emergency docket – often criticized as the “shadow docket” – a few days after the DC Circuit Court of Appeals rejected TikTok's request for a temporary block on the law, adding to the company's list of legal setbacks leading up to the enforcement of the ban in February.
TikTok's attorneys are urging the Supreme Court to temporarily halt the ban until the justices can consider the company's appeal to review the challenge to it. If the justices agree, at the very least, the law will remain suspended until the court decides whether it will hear the case.
CNN’s John Fritze contributed to this report.
Amidst the legal dispute, TikTok's leadership is actively engaging with prominent figures in the business world, including the potential meeting with former President Trump. This strategy could potentially influence the outcome of the ongoing mandate for TikTok to sell to a non-Chinese owner or face a ban in the United States.
The Supreme Court's decision to consider TikTok's emergency appeal comes at a crucial point, as the justices could temporary halt the ban and protect the platform's First Amendment rights, buying time for a more detailed review of the challenge.