TikTok CEO shares message for Joe Biden and Congress after president signs bill ... trends now
The CEO of TikTok challenged Joe Biden and Congress after federal officials pushed through legislation that could ban his app in the U.S.
On Wednesday, President Biden signed a law that forces TikTok's China-based parent company ByteDance to either divest from the social media platform in one year or face a ban in the U.S.
But shortly after the potential ban was signed into law, TikTok CEO Shou Chew posted a video on the social media app defiantly claiming 'Rest assured, we aren't going anywhere.'
'As you may have heard Congress passed a bill that the president signed into law that is designed to ban TikTok in the United States,' Chew said.
'That will take TikTok away from you and 170 million Americans who find community and connection on our platform.'
'Make no mistake, this is a ban. A ban on TikTok and a ban on you and your voice.'
President Joe Biden spoke after signing the potential TikTok ban saying the law will make U.S. and the world safer
'Politicians may say otherwise but don't get confused. Many who sponsored the bill admit a TikTok ban is the ultimate goal.'
Chew slammed the new law, claiming that 'the facts and the Constitution are on our side.'
In a statement, a TikTok spokesperson told DailyMail.com that they will take the law to court.
'This unconstitutional law is a TikTok ban, and we will challenge it in court. We believe the facts and the law are clearly on our side, and we will ultimately prevail.'
But the House China Select Committee has said that Chinese Communist Party (CCP) officials through ByteDance are using TikTok to spy on its U.S. users' locations and dictate its algorithm to conduct influence campaigns, making it a national security threat.
The committee - comprised of nearly an equal amount of Republicans and Democrats - spent a year mulling the dangers posed by the app and the implications of outlawing it in the U.S.
Ultimately, the lawmakers struck a consensus that the dangers posed by TikTok were too great, and they moved swiftly to split it from its Chinese parent company ByteDance.
The bill's first iteration called specifically designated ByteDance and TikTok as foreign adversary-controlled applications.
'The Chinese Communist Party, and its leader Xi Jinping have their hands deep in the inner workings of the company,' Rep. Mike Gallagher, R-Wis., the chair of the China Select Committee, warned in early March.
It was quickly passed by the
