Even though former President Donald Trump enacted an executive order to ban TikTok while he was in the White House, he once again says he now opposes barring access to the popular social platform, writing in a post to Truth Social on Monday that President Joe Biden would be to blame for the possible restrictions.
"Just so everyone knows, especially the young people, Crooked Joe Biden is responsible for banning TikTok," wrote the former president. "He is the one pushing it to close, and doing it to help his friends over at Facebook become richer and more dominant, and able to continue to fight, perhaps illegally, the Republican Party."
The statement comes just two days after the House of Representatives voted to ban TikTok in the United States over concerns about it being run by a China-based company. The legislation, which passed the House by a 360-58 vote, would ban the platform if it is not sold by parent company ByteDance within the year.
The measure will now head to the Senate. Biden previously said that he would sign the TikTok legislation if it reaches his desk.
While president, Trump enacted the executive order in August 2020 that would have effectively banned the use of TikTok if ByteDance did not sell it within 45 days. That order, however, was blocked in court, with a federal judge finding four months later that Trump had overstepped his official powers.
But the former president has recently reversed his opinion on the TikTok fight, claiming that doing so could boost Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram. Trump has repeatedly attacked Meta since the company suspended his Facebook account shortly after the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. He was reinstated to the platform last spring.
In his post to Truth Social Monday afternoon, Trump called the effort to ban TikTok "election interference," adding, "Young people, and lots of others, must remember this on November 5th, ELECTION DAY, when they vote! They also must remember, more importantly, that he is destroying our Country, and is A MAJOR THREAT TO DEMOCRACY!"
Newsweek reached out to Biden's campaign via email for comment Monday night.
Despite Trump's vocal opposition, a majority of House Republicans supported the TikTok ban bill during Saturday's vote. Only 25 GOP lawmakers voted against it, including a few of Trump's allies such as Florida Representative Matt Gaetz and Georgia Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene.
The majority of Democrats also voted "yes" on the legislation, although 33 lawmakers split with the rest of their caucus.
Gaetz previously told Newsweek that he worried the legislation to ban TikTok was too "broad" and didn't offer the chance for amendments.
"We ought to have the opportunity to present amendments and to have them voted on," Gaetz said.
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