President-elect Donald Trump has suggested that the United States should acquire a 50 percent stake in TikTok. This proposal came less than 24 hours before his inauguration as the 47th President of the US and shortly after the ban on TikTok went into effect in the country.
The Supreme Court in the US had recently ruled that a ban on TikTok could be implemented, despite an appeal from the app’s owners claiming it violated the First Amendment. In response, Trump announced on his Truth Social platform that he would issue an executive order to delay the ban’s enforcement, allowing for negotiations to protect national security.
He said: “I would like the United States to have a 50% ownership position in a joint venture. By doing this, we save TikTok, keep it in good hands and allow it to stay up. Without U.S. approval, there is no Tik Tok. With our approval, it is worth hundreds of billions of dollars – maybe trillions.
“Therefore, my initial thought is a joint venture between the current owners and/or new owners whereby the U.S. gets a 50% ownership in a joint venture set up between the U.S. and whichever purchase we so choose.”
