Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) made the case as to why banning the Chinese-owned app, TikTok, makes “no sense” ahead of the House passing the legislation on Wednesday.
In a 352-65 vote, the House passed a bill that could ban TikTok in the United States, which Republicans say poses a national security threat.
However, Paul argued that banning the Chinese-dominated app is a “draconian measure that stifles free expression, tramples constitutional rights, and disrupts the economic pursuits of millions of Americans.”
In a Twitter post, Paul claimed that banning TikTok would result in “ignoring its substantial investments in data security” and threaten the “American digital innovation.”
🚨📰 My statement on the House TikTok Ban 📰🚨
— Rand Paul (@RandPaul) March 13, 2024
The passage of the House TikTok ban is not just a misguided overreach; it's a draconian measure that stifles free expression, tramples constitutional rights, and disrupts the economic pursuits of millions of Americans.
With an iron…
He pointed out that lawmakers from both sides of the political aisle want to ban the app because it is owned by China, which Paul argued is not entirely true.
🧵2/2
— Rand Paul (@RandPaul) March 13, 2024
They want to ban TikTok because it’s “owned by China”
Not true.
60% of the company is owned by US and international investors.
20% is owned by the company founders.
20% is owned by company employees, including over 7,000 Americans.
The CEO of TikTok is from…
Paul also pushed back on politicians who say they want to ban TikTok because its date cannot be secured due to its algorithm being in China.
However, the Republican senator claims that the algorithm runs in the U.S. in Oracle Cloud with their review of the code.
🧵1/2
— Rand Paul (@RandPaul) March 13, 2024
Reactionaries who want to ban TikTok claim the data can’t be secured because the “algorithm” is in China.
Not true.
The truth is the Algorithm runs in the U.S. in oracle cloud with their review of the code. (NOT in China).
Maybe we should examine the facts before…
Paul did acknowledge that the communist country “Does demand things,” but said that it hasn’t been proven that “Any information really is going from TikTok to any of these people in China.”
If passed, TikTok, owned by ByteDance, will have 165 days from the day it is enacted to dismantle the app or face a ban on U.S. app stores and web hosting services.