(TheConservativeTimes.org) – The House is being pressured to vote on a bill pushing for the sale or total ban of TikTok which is also bundled with the Ukraine aid package, according to House Speaker Mike Johnson.
There has been a modified version of the bill which would state that TikTok had one year to make a change on whether they’d sell the platform or it would be banned in the United States. This bill gives them an extra six months on top of the first six months that were given in the original bill they were looking to pass.
House lawmakers are expecting to pass the bill this weekend after they set up a vote in the Senate.
The new bill was constructed to add more time for ByteDance, the owner of TikTok, to figure out what its next moves will be since many have said that six months isn’t long enough to organize a sale for the platform.
Senate Commerce Committee Chair Maria Cantwell wasn’t initially for the bill, but she now expressed her support for it. Says Cantwell, “I’m very happy that Speaker Johnson and House leaders incorporated my recommendation to extend the Byte Dance divestment period from six months to a year.” She continued, “As I’ve said, extending the divestment period is necessary to ensure there is enough time for a new buyer to get a deal done. I support this updated legislation.”
This ultimatum has been brought to light after many people showed concern over potential security breaches and data collection through the app. Many legislators have said that this platform could allow the Chinese government to spy or use propaganda on U.S. citizens.
The push comes even harder now as the United States election is coming up in November and lawmakers are worried about the effects that TikTok could have on the election or social media revolving around the candidates.
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