Gallagher, Krishnamoorthi to TikTok CEO: "TikTok Blatantly Deceived Americans"

Chairman Mike Gallagher (R-WI) and Ranking Member Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL) of the House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party today wrote to TikTok CEO, Shou Zi Chew, demanding that TikTok immediately stop deceiving its users, broadcasting false information about the lawmakers bill, the Protecting Americans From Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act.

In part, the lawmakers write, "Last week, TikTok distributed the following messages to many of its American users: ‘Congress is planning a total ban of TikTok. Speak up now—before your government strips 170 million Americans of their Constitutional right to free expression. This will damage millions of businesses, destroy the livelihoods of countless creators across the country, and deny artists an audience. Let Congress know what TikTok means to you and tell them to vote NO. Call now.’ & ‘TikTok is at risk of being shut down in the US. Call your representative now.'"

They continue, "These messages are deceptive. The Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act does not ban TikTok. Rather, it gives TikTok six months to eliminate foreign adversary control—which would include ByteDance divesting its current ownership—to remain available in the United States. All TikTok would have to do is separate from CCP-controlled ByteDance. However, if TikTok chose not to rid itself of this CCP control, the application would no longer be offered in U.S. app stores. But TikTok would have no one but itself to blame—it would be choosing this path by opting for CCP control rather than Americans’ privacy and national security.”

Read the letter to TikTok CEO, Shou Zi Chew HERE.

Click HERE to read more about the Protecting Americans From Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act