Speaker Johnson: House will ‘apply every amount of pressure’ on Senate to pass TikTok bill

WHITE SULFUR SPRINGS, W.Va. — House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) said Wednesday that the House will “apply every push” to the Senate to approve legislation that could ban TikTok. The bill passed with an overwhelming bipartisan majority.

Johnson’s comments came during a House Republican retreat in West Virginia, where Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, who had been less than enthusiastic about bringing the House-passed bill to the floor for a vote, said: This follows comments from New York State.

“We’re going to put as much pressure as we can because we think it’s the right thing to do,” Johnson told New York Post reporter Josh Christenson when asked about the TikTok bill during a conversation at the retreat. ” he said.

The House of Representatives on Wednesday approved a bill to protect Americans from control applications by foreign adversaries by a vote of 352-65. This would force China-based ByteDance, which owns TikTok, to either sell the app or be banned from U.S. app stores and web hosting. service. The company would have to sell within about five months after the bill takes effect.

But despite the overwhelming vote in the House, the bill’s chances of success in the Senate remain uncertain. In a statement Wednesday, shortly after the House approved the bill, Schumer said, “The Senate will consider the bill as soon as it leaves the House.”

He issued a similar message on Tuesday, telling reporters: “Let’s see what the House does.”

He added at the time: “We need and will consult with the chairs of the relevant committees and see what their views are.”

President Biden has said he intends to sign the bill once it hits his desk.

The push to ban TikTok has sparked heated debate on Capitol Hill, with supporters voicing national security concerns and opponents pushing back on issues related to free speech.

Johnson, who voted in favor of the bill, spoke about the latter on Wednesday, rejecting arguments that banning TikTok violates First Amendment rights.

“There was some discussion in the chamber today against that, with several people suggesting that. [is] It somehow violates the First Amendment. I mean, I’m a constitutional law scholar. We believe this is a matter of conduct, not content, and a serious and direct threat to national security. And I think they deserve to be treated that way,” Johnson said.