White House Launches TikTok Account
(MENAFN) With a critical enforcement deadline approaching, the White House has officially launched a TikTok account, marking a dramatic shift in strategy as former President Donald Trump’s administration weighs a potential U.S. ban on the popular app.
The debut post features a video clip of Trump declaring, “Every day, I wake up determined to deliver a better life for the people all across this nation. I am your voice,” accompanied by the caption: “America we are BACK! What’s up TikTok?”
The move comes as the Trump administration nears a pivotal Sept. 17 deadline for ByteDance, TikTok’s Chinese parent firm, to sell its U.S. operations or face a total ban. The order stems from longstanding national security concerns about alleged data access by Beijing.
TikTok, which boasts a U.S. user base of roughly 170 million, was briefly taken offline earlier this year ahead of Trump’s second inauguration. Service was restored shortly afterward when he announced a delay in enforcement.
The White House TikTok account amassed 67,000 followers within hours of launch, signaling swift public engagement despite uncertainty over the platform’s future.
Congress passed bipartisan legislation in 2024 requiring ByteDance to divest the app’s American operations. However, Trump has since issued three extensions, most recently via a June executive order pushing the deadline to mid-September.
Speaking that same month, Trump confirmed ongoing negotiations involving new ownership: “I think (Chinese) President Xi (Jinping) will probably do it.” He described the bidders as “very, very wealthy people” but did not clarify whether a major technology firm was involved.
“A group of wealthy people” is prepared to purchase TikTok, Trump added, though the deal still requires formal approval from Chinese authorities.
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