US President-elect Donald Trump announced on Saturday that he will likely grant TikTok a 90-day extension to negotiate a deal that could prevent the popular video-sharing app from being banned in the country. In an interview with NBC News, Trump said he had not made a final decision but was considering granting TikTok a reprieve after his inauguration on Monday.
Under a law passed by Congress and signed by President Joe Biden last year, TikTok’s China-based parent company was given nine months to sell its US operations to an approved buyer. The law, set to take effect on Sunday, prohibits mobile app stores and internet hosting services from distributing TikTok to US users. However, the sitting president has the authority to grant an extension if a sale is underway.
Trump told “Meet the Press” moderator Kristen Welker in a phone interview, “I think that would be, certainly, an option that we look at. The 90-day extension is something that will be most likely done, because it’s appropriate. You know, it’s appropriate.” He added, “We have to look at it carefully. It’s a very big situation.”
The President-elect said if he decides to grant the extension, he will likely announce it on Monday.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre and deputy attorney general Lisa Monaco clarified on Friday that the Biden administration would leave implementing the law to Trump, given that his inauguration falls the day after the ban takes effect.
In a statement released Friday, TikTok requested a definitive response from the Biden administration, asking that it not enforce the law or fine app store operators and other US companies if TikTok remains available after Sunday. Without assurances, TikTok warned it might “go dark,” without specifying whether it would voluntarily suspend its US operations or shut down after losing access to essential service providers.
On Saturday, the White House dismissed TikTok’s statement as a “stunt.” Jean-Pierre said, “We see no reason for TikTok or other companies to take actions in the next few days before the Trump administration takes office on Monday. We have laid out our position clearly and straightforwardly: actions to implement this law will fall to the next administration. So TikTok and other companies should take up any concerns with them.”
