President Trump has a liking for TikTok, but the popular video app, which has approximately 170 million users in the U.S., needs to be owned by American interests, according to Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick.
“The president really enjoys TikTok, mentioning repeatedly how it’s a great way to connect with younger audiences,” Lutnick stated during a Fox News Sunday interview with Shannon Breem.
“However, we can’t allow a Chinese company to have its app on 100 million American phones. That just isn’t acceptable. So, it needs to be in American hands, using American technology and algorithms,” he added. “If it’s under American ownership, we know that the President supports TikTok.”
Lutnick’s remarks came after he cautioned last week that TikTok would need to cease its operations in the U.S. if China doesn’t agree to the app’s sale.
On Thursday, he emphasized the importance of controlling the algorithms that drive social media platforms.
The parent company of TikTok, Bytedance, faces a deadline of September 17 to transfer its U.S. assets.
Previously, Trump had extended the deadline for this sale by 90 days, requiring Bytedance to comply by September 17, despite existing legislation that mandated the sale or closure by January 19 of this year.
“China might maintain some minor interests, but fundamentally, Americans need to have control. American ownership means American technology, American algorithms,” Lutnick explained.
“If the Chinese government approves the sale, it will move forward. But if they refuse, TikTok’s operations will come to a halt, and decisions on that are imminent,” he mentioned.
This past spring, progress was made towards transferring TikTok’s operations to a U.S.-based company, which aimed for majority American ownership. However, complications arose after China indicated it would not support Trump’s last-minute tariffs on its goods.
Trump has permitted three temporary measures regarding the enforcement of a law that mandated TikTok’s sale or closure, which was scheduled to take effect in January.
