‘A Trojan Horse for the Chinese Communist Party’; U.S. Senate unanimously bans TikTok on government devices

After a string of states, all citing security concerns, banned the use of TikTok on state-issued devices, the United States Senate on Wednesday unanimously voted to do the same.

In 2020, Pete Ricketts of Nebraska became the first governor to block TikTok on government devices. Last month, Governor Kristi Noem of South Dakota restricted the social media platform in her state, and several other states quickly followed suit. Now, at least 10 states have prohibited the use of TikTok on government-issued devices.

Many criticized the federal government for not doing more to safeguard the country from alleged threats of Chinese Communist Party surveillance. The controversial short-form video hosting service, which has become wildly popular, especially among young people, has ties to the CCP. With an estimated 600 million daily active users, the platform steals user data which could then fall into the hands of China's Communist Party.

As Convention of States Action reported last week, other nations, including India, Ireland, and the UK, have taken government action against TikTok to safeguard against these security concerns.

President Trump attempted to ban the app completely, but his efforts were derailed by a federal court and his successor, who revoked Trump’s anti-TikTok executive order.

Since then, legal action against TikTok has gained traction both with government officials and the American people.

According to a poll from earlier this year, only 17.8 percent of voters opposed removing the app from app stores.

Senator Josh Hawley, who introduced the legislation to ban TikTok in the U.S. Senate, called the app a “Trojan Horse for the Chinese Communist Party.”

“It’s a major security risk to the United States,” he said, “and until it is forced to sever ties with China completely, it has no place on government devices. States across the U.S. are banning TikTok on government devices. It’s time for Joe Biden and the Democrats to help do the same.”

For such a hot-button topic to pick up bipartisan support and pass unanimously seems almost miraculous in this day and age. It goes to show just how important it is to the American people that we crack down on CCP influence in our country.

It also shows the power of state leadership and initiative. Rather than wait for the federal government to make a move, the states took action to protect their citizens and forced Washington’s hand.

Now, the future of the Senate’s TikTok ban is in the hands of the House of Representatives and Executive Branch. Will Joe Biden have the courage to stand up to the Chinese Communist Party and sign this important piece of legislation?

Regardless of what happens, at least the D.C. Swamp now sees just how powerful the states really are.

To rein in the federal government and keep its officials accountable to We the People, sign the Convention of States petition below.