President Donald Trump has much more than smoke for TikTok. The head of state has actual executive orders pushing to ban the popular Chinese-operated social media giant from getting into the hands of Americans.
Donald Trump’s TikTok Ban
According to reports, President Trump Thursday issued executive orders in an attempt to ban both TikTok and social media platform WeChat from being operational in the United States. There is a 45-day deadline and the only solution would be for them to be purchased by a non-Chinese company.
The orders, which use similar language, do not state that a certain amount of money from the sale needs to be sent to the US Treasury Department, which the President has been insisting on for several days. The order regarding TikTok prohibits after 45 days “any transaction by any person, or with respect to any property, subject to the jurisdiction of the United States, with ByteDance Ltd.,” the Chinese company that owns the social media platform. (CNN)
TikTok has since responded to Donald Trump’s threat and vowed legal action.
TikTok said it was “shocked” by the order, claiming there has been “no due process or adherence to the law” from the Trump administration. “This Executive Order risks undermining global businesses’ trust in the United States’ commitment to the rule of law, which has served as a magnet for investment and spurred decades of American economic growth,” TikTok said in a blog post. (CNBC)
High-Key Details
Last weekend, Atlanta rapper Lil Yachty hit up his social media pages to get at Donald. Instead of getting super deep, Lil Boat simply said he couldn’t give Trump a pass if he went through on the TikTok ban.
“I’ll never forgive trump if he ban tiktok fr” -Lil Yachty’s Twitter
Throughout the same day, the Internet lit up everyone’s social media feeds with smoke aimed at Trump. People went at Donald with a slew of epic memes in an effort to make him reconsider ending TikTok for people in the Untied States.
“TikTok can’t ruin anymore songs. God is good ??” -Hip Hop Memes Daily’s Instagram
Wait, There’s More
Last Friday, President Trump told media and reporters he would most likely use an executive order power to ban the Chinese-owned social media giant. Despite its massive popularity and celebrity accounts, Donald is determined to end the TikTok app from Americans in the United States.
Trump made the comments while chatting with reporters on Air Force One. “As far as TikTok is concerned we’re banning them from the United States,” Trump said. Trump did not specify whether he will act through an executive order, or another method such as a designation, according to NBC News. (CNBC)
Trump also revealed his decision to order China’s ByteDance Ltd. to give its ownership of the music-themed video app to another company. TikTok’s run in the United States could fade to black in the coming hours.
President Donald Trump plans to announce a decision ordering China’s ByteDance Ltd. to divest its ownership of the music-video app TikTok, which is popular with U.S. teens, according to people familiar with the matter. The U.S. has been investigating potential national security risks due to the company’s control of the app, and Trump’s decision could be announced as soon as Friday, the people said. “We are looking at TikTok. We may be banning TikTok,” Trump told reporters at the White House Friday. “We are looking at a lot of alternatives with respect to TikTok.” (Bloomberg)
Before You Go
Over the past few months, hip-hop has fully embraced TikTok videos. Everyone from rap star couple Cardi B and Offset to Lil Wayne‘s daughter Reginae Carter have built a following on TikTok.