White House national security communications advisor John Kirby was pressed Monday on the Biden campaign launching a TikTok account, despite the administration calling the social media platform, owned by the Chinese company ByteDance, a “national security threat.”
The question about why the president’s campaign opened an account came as the administration is considering a national ban on the video-sharing site, which has already been blocked from use on federal devices.
During a press briefing on Monday, Fox News’s Jacqui Heinrich followed up on earlier questions about the president launching his campaign account on Super Bowl Sunday.
Q Thank you, Karine. John, just following up on this TikTok stuff. Is — is the CFIUS [the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States] review still happening?
MR. KIRBY: I’d have to refer you to CFIUS. I’m not in a position to confirm one way or another what they’re — what they’re looking at.
Q So, is the administration still weighing a ban on TikTok?
MR. KIRBY: Again, I have nothing for you on that, Jacqui. I mean, I’d have to refer you to — to CFIUS. All I can speak to credibly, which I have today, is that, from an NSC perspective, there are still national security concerns about the use of TikTok on government devices. And there’s been no change to our policy not to allow that.
MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Awesome. Thank you.
Q Can you help me understand, though, like, why — why there wouldn’t be any communication between CFIUS and the administration broadly? I mean, with the National Security Council, given —
MR. KIRBY: I didn’t say there — I didn’t say there wasn’t. I just said I’m not able to speak to issues regarding CFIUS. You’d have to talk to them. It’s an independent body. And it’s not something I — I can’t speak for them.
Q I think we’re all just trying to square why the President would use this platform that his administration is weighing a national ban on because of national security concerns.
MR. KIRBY: Again, I’m not going to speak to any hypothetical ban. I can only tell you that it’s not allowed on government devices. That policy remains the case. And I just can’t speak for the campaign or their decisions. I apologize. (White House Transcript)
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