Trump Urges Supreme Court to Delay TikTok Ban Until Jan. 10 Arguments, Cites Popularity on Platform

Jan 3, 2025, 06:11 PM

President-elect Donald Trump has urged the U.S. Supreme Court to delay the deadline for TikTok to divest from its Chinese parent company or face a nationwide ban, suggesting his incoming administration could negotiate a deal to resolve the issue. The Supreme Court is set to hear arguments on the TikTok case on January 10. Trump's position on TikTok has shifted, as he recently expressed support for the platform on Truth Social, questioning the rationale for banning it given its popularity among users, including himself, where his accounts have garnered 3.8 billion views compared to Vice President Kamala Harris's 1.3 billion views. TikTok, in its filing to the Supreme Court, argued that the proposed law stems from its refusal to censor certain viewpoints, challenging the government's claim that the law is meant to address national security concerns related to its ownership by ByteDance, a Chinese company. The platform, used by 170 million Americans, has been accused by some U.S. lawmakers of being 'too pro-Palestine'. The Biden administration has urged the Supreme Court to reject Trump's request for a delay, maintaining that the law is necessary to cut TikTok's ties to the Chinese government, with the current deadline set for January 19.