The U.S. House passed a contentious bill today that could force the social media app TikTok off of American app stores if the app’s Chinese parent company doesn’t sell it to a new owner.
According to the bill’s proponents, TikTok poses a cybersecurity threat to American users through its owner, ByteDance, which has ties to the Chinese government. Top national security officials in the Biden administration have publicly testified on the dangers of TikTok and gave all House members a classified briefing on the subject yesterday.
Naturally, the bill drew intense blowback from TikTok itself, which unleashed a massive lobbying operation to persuade lawmakers to oppose it. But their efforts didn’t make much headway in the House, and the bill passed on a broadly bipartisan 352-65 vote, with opposition largely coming from the left wing of the Democratic caucus and the right wing of the Republican caucus.
There was little drama in the New Jersey delegation: all 11 of the state’s House members who were in attendance today voted for the bill, including progressives like Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-Ewing) and conservatives like Rep. Jeff Van Drew (R-Dennis). In fact, two New Jersey House members, Reps. Mikie Sherrill (D-Montclair) and Josh Gottheimer (D-Wyckoff), were among the bill’s original co-sponsors.
“Today’s vote demonstrated our nation’s dedication to fighting back against the Chinese Communist Party – a known adversary – and their malign activities,” Gottheimer said in a statement. “Using TikTok, the Chinese government has the ability to control what an entire generation of Americans see and consume every single day. In the wrong hands, this data is an enormous asset.”
But Rep. Andy Kim (D-Moorestown), who was not present for the vote, said that he would have opposed the bill had he been there.
“There are very real security concerns about TikTok and the protection of Americans’ information, but there are more steps and deliberations needed before we in Congress should take the proposed action in this legislation,” Kim said. “I was unable to be in DC this week, but would have voted NO.”
The bill was first approved in the House Energy and Commerce Committee last week on a unanimous vote; among its supporters there was Rep. Frank Pallone (D-Long Branch), the committee’s ranking Democratic member.
“We have a long history of restricting our TV and radio airwaves from ownership by foreign governments and individuals, due to the national security concerns these arrangements pose,” Pallone said today on the House floor. “Social media companies should also face similar scrutiny. After all, while technology has evolved, the threats are very much the same.”
At the same committee meeting last week, Pallone’s own bill to prevent data brokers from selling Americans’ data to foreign adversaries was also approved unanimously. That bill is set to come up for a full House vote next week.
The TikTok bill now heads to the Senate where, according to several reports, the path to passage may be more difficult. But in an encouraging sign, the top Democrat and Republican on the Senate Intelligence Committee are both supporting it, which could help win over skeptics. President Joe Biden has said he will sign the bill if it passes.
This story was updated at 12:52 p.m. with comment from Kim.