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Kelly says he is aware TikTok ban 'is controversial,' but there is 'national security risk to' app

Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) said Sunday that a potential ban on TikTok is “controversial” but that he knows the app “presents national security risks.” Ta.

“If you imagine [there’s going to] We're going to have a disruption of service starting on the 19th,” Kelly told CBS News' Margaret Brennan on “Face the Nation.”

“I know this is controversial. I know there are people who make a living off TikTok, but there are national security risks to it,” he added.

The law, passed by Congress with broad bipartisan support and signed by President Biden last April, would ban TikTok in the US starting January 19 unless it divested from its China-based parent company ByteDance. It is mandatory to face.

TikTok is currently fighting in the U.S. Supreme Court to save its platform, but has received a lukewarm response from the country's highest court. Social platforms say divestment is virtually impossible.

Former Attorney General Noel Francisco, who represented TikTok, previously told the Supreme Court that the app was effectively “going dark” and that a ban would violate the “First Amendment.” said.

“Let's assume that China uses its influence over Jeff Bezos, whose international empire includes business in China, to force … the Washington Post to write whatever it wants on the front page.” Francisco said.

“I don't think the government is going to step in and say, 'Jeff Bezos, you need to either sell the Washington Post or shut it down,'” he continued.

Kelly said during an appearance on “Face the Nation” that he was concerned about TikTok and “their ability to manipulate the American population, especially in times of conflict.”

“So it was the right decision, I voted for it, and it looks like the Supreme Court is going to uphold the bill that we passed,” he added.

The Hill has reached out to TikTok for comment.

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