An new effort led by Senator Tom Cotton’s (R-AR) to ban TikTok is a direct assault on the Trump Administration’s pledge to save the app. President Donald J. Trump has promised to give TikTok at least 90 days to avoid a current ban. The Biden Administration was intent on shutting down the app for one day, even though it was clear that Trump was going to immediately undo the Biden ban. This last minute act by Biden stinks of politics and sour grapes from a politicians who mistakenly claims that he would have won the last election had he not dropped out.
Democrats are not the only ones who have lost touch with voters. There are several Republicans who have joined the fight to ban an app loved by millions of voting Americans. President Trump campaign to save TikTok and the voters responded with support. Hawkish Republicans want to look tough on China and they don’t need to worry about the consequences of being over broad with their approach.
There needs to be balance and smart approaches to the many issues complicating relations between China and the United States. President Trump has it right. Nobody doubts that China is a trade and national security adversary, yet nobody can dispute that China is an important trading partner and an no-China trade policy would actually endanger national security by removing commerce between the nations. Trump has struck an appropriate balance.
The bottom line is that banning the app is a free speech betrayal of American values, because so many Americans use it to communicate political messages. Sen. Cotton’s proposal flies in the face of the First Amendment, which guarantees freedom of expression, even on platforms some politicians find inconvenient. Donald Trump, by contrast, understood the importance of addressing national security concerns without resorting to outright bans that trample on fundamental rights.
President Trump’s pledge to undo the current ban shows his leadership skills and should be a call to Congress to repeal the ban or at least modify current law to provide TikTok more time to allay any concerns of Congress and the new Trump Administration on national security concerns. A new TikTok ban would send a chilling message to the world: that the United States, a supposed beacon of freedom, is willing to silence its own citizens when it’s politically expedient.
Banning TikTok again makes America no better than the authoritarian regimes we criticize. Trump’s brilliant approach acknowledged the platform’s challenges while avoiding the draconian overreach Cotton now champions. America’s strength lies in its ability to defend liberty while addressing legitimate concerns—not in banning platforms millions rely on for self-expression, activism, and creativity.
Sen. Cotton’s heavy-handed solution also reveals how deeply out of touch he and many in Congress are with regard to modern Americans, particularly the views of younger voters and Donald Trump’s agenda. Take for instance, his push back to have the classified files and details of JFK’s assignation withheld from the American public—a promise Donald Trump just made to release during his victory rally the night before his inauguration.
. TikTok has become a vital tool for everything from grassroots activism to small business promotion. By proposing to eliminate it altogether, Cotton alienates a generation already skeptical of his party’s relevance. In contrast, Trump has always demonstrated an unparalleled ability to connect with cultural currents and appeal to a broad base. Cotton’s tone-deaf authoritarianism would only push more voters away.
The First Amendment isn’t negotiable, and protecting it is what sets the United States apart. Cotton’s proposal would weaken America’s standing in the world and betray the freedoms we hold dear. Trump’s approach—to respect free expression while addressing legitimate concerns—stands as the better path forward. Cotton should abandon his dangerous overreach and learn what it truly means to uphold American values.
Thankfully, President Trump will suspend the law citing the First Amendment concerns and the need for TikTok being allowed more time to negotiate possible solutions to the controversy. A ‘ban now, worry about the consequences later,’ approach to this problem ignores the serious First Amendment and national security folly of an outright ban. The short-sighted approach by some Republicans, and the Biden Administration, in continuing to support a ban of TikTok is harmful for users of the app and is politically unpopular.
Let’s get on board with the Trump approach on dealing with TikTok.
Judson Phillips is the founder of Tea Party Nation, one of the largest tea party groups in the country.
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