TikTok ban upheld: Can Donald Trump save the short-video app?

The US Supreme Court upheld the federal law banning TikTok in the country on Friday, in a blow to the short-video app. The court ruled that the law does not violate free speech rights and that the US government had demonstrated legitimate national security concerns about the Chinese company owning the app.

The company has planned a shutdown from the US from Sunday. The app will become unavailable for new users to download, while existing users can continue using it for a while.

President-elect Donald Trump, who is set to return to the White House on January 20, hinted in an interview that it is "up to him" to save the app's fate in the country. The Biden administration had also lobbied for TikTok to continue operations in the US.


Can Trump help the ByteDance-owned company? Here are a few possible ways.

• Trump could issue an executive order to direct the government not to enforce the law or to delay enforcement to complete a deal. This has been used by past presidents to challenge laws.

• Some of Trump's allies had loose discussions about buying TikTok, NYT had reported.

• Once Trump takes office, the law's implementation will fall to his attorney general, who could choose not to enforce it, or stall it, defying Congress's overwhelming support for the legislation.

Reversal

Trump has reversed his position on the app. He tried to ban it himself during his first term in office over national security concerns. However, he joined TikTok during his 2024 presidential campaign and his team used it to connect with younger voters. He connected with male voters especially. He pledged to "save TikTok" during the campaign and has credited the platform with helping him win more youth votes.