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Amy Sherman
By Amy Sherman January 20, 2025

Trump issues order to pause TikTok ban for 75 days

On his first day in office, President Donald Trump issued an executive order to pause the TikTok ban for 75 days. 

Trump's order says the attorney general "shall not take any action to enforce the Act" passed by Congress. That will give Trump's administration "an opportunity to determine the appropriate course of action." 

The attorney general, Trump wrote, will issue written guidance to apply the order.

Before the inauguration, Trump floated the idea of the United States having "a 50% ownership position in a joint venture" with TikTok. He reiterated that possibility as he signed the order. ByteDance, TikTok's parent company, is a privately owned company that says 60% of its owners are global investors. Its Chinese cofounders have a 20% ownership share, and its employees own 20%.

Trump told reporters last year, "We love TikTok. I'm going to save TikTok." Saving TikTok is one of 75 Trump campaign promises we are tracking on our MAGA-Meter.

TikTok, a popular video app with 170 million U.S. users, shut down shortly before midnight Jan. 19, following a Jan. 17 U.S. Supreme Court decision to uphold bipartisan legislation requiring the company's sale to a U.S. company. But hours later, amid Trump's vows to save it, TikTok was back online for many U.S. users.

During his first presidency, Trump tried to ban TikTok, but during the 2024 presidential campaign, he changed his tune, repeatedly speaking against a ban. This position change met PolitiFact's definition of a Full Flop

Trump's executive order might not withstand legal challenges, legal experts said.

Kate Klonick, a  St. John's University law professor, said Trump has the authority to tell the Justice Department and attorney general to pursue nonenforcement. 

"The DOJ (theoretically) follows the orders of the executive, so there will be no fines enforced during this period," Klonick said. "But this is a little like the Sheriff telling his police officers not to issue tickets for speeding … if an officer DOES decide to issue a ticket for speeding and it goes to a judge, then a policy of non-enforcement gets a lot more complicated. 

She continued, "It's a wink and a handshake to not enforce hundreds of billions in potential fines required under U.S. law. Judging that risk assessment will be up to Apple, Oracle, and Google lawyers, among other companies."

Ryan Goodman, a New York University Law professor, said it is risky to count on an extension being upheld in court. 

Goodman pointed to a statement by Republican Sens. Tom Cotton of Oklahoma and Pete Ricketts of Nebraska who said, "Now that the law has taken effect, there's no legal basis for any kind of 'extension' of its effective date." 

Our task is to evaluate Trump's progress on his promise to "save" TikTok. He took the first step by signing an executive order, but we will monitor to see whether it withstands legal challenges. For now, we rate this promise In the Works. 

RELATED: Tracking Donald Trump's complete position change on banning TikTok in the US

RELATED: All of Trump's promises PolitiFact is tracking on the MAGA-Meter

 

Our Sources

President Donald Trump, Action on TikTok, Jan. 20, 2025

President Elect Donald Trump, Truth Social post, Jan. 19, 2025

Congress.gov, H.R.7521 - Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, March 13, 2024

Sen. Rand Paul, X post, Jan. 20, 2025

Email interview, Ryan Goodman, NYU law professor and co-editor-in-chief, Just Security, Jan. 19 and Jan. 20, 2025

Email interview, Barbara McQuade, University of Michigan law professor and former U.S. Attorney, Jan. 19, 2025

Email interview, Kate Klonick, associate professor of law at St. John's University, Jan. 20, 2025

 

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