The whole world is now watching how Uncle Sam conducts himself as the world’s most greedy and immoral bandit.
The US House of Representatives on Saturday passed a package of four bills, including three that provide a total of $95 billion in military aid for Ukraine, Israel and the Taiwan Island, and allow the confiscation of Russia’s assets in the United States. The other one will force TikTok’s Chinese parent company to divest the highly popular and profitable social media platform, or face a ban in the US. How will the world see these bills?
The continued aid to Ukraine exposes Washington’s true intentions in pursuing the Ukraine-Russia war even though that means sacrificing more Ukrainian soldiers. It will see the continued decimation of the Ukrainian army, which is already experiencing a serious shortage of new recruits. In the worst scenario, it could lead to the destruction of Ukraine.
The world will see the aid package for Israel as continued US support for what is seen as acts of genocide in Gaza, which have already claimed the lives of over 34,000 innocent Palestinians, two-thirds of them women and children.
By providing military aid to Taiwan, the US is violating the one-China principle and the provisions of the three Sino-US joint communiques, and threatens to stir up another needless confrontation in the Taiwan Strait.
The confiscation of Russian assets would send a strong message that any investment in the US is risky and subject to arbitrary confiscation. This would undoubtedly weaken the US dollar’s status as the world’s reserve currency. China has reportedly reduced its US dollar assets in favor of gold, and many other countries are following suit.
The bill, which seeks to force TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, to divest its US unit or face a ban in the US, was passed by the Senate on late Tuesday and signed into law by US President Joe Biden on Wednesday. The deadline for compliance has been extended to one year from six months in the final bill, a move clearly intended to avoid controversy before the November US elections. The sell-or-ban measure demonstrates that if the US sees anything profitable in the US market, it could grab it at any cost. Only the naive would consider investing in the US now. A TikTok ban could have serious consequences.
First, the ban would trample upon the right to free speech of 170 million American TikTok users, who might not give up easily. According to a recent poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, among those who use TikTok daily, 73 percent opposed any national ban. Many of those users have been incensed by the fact that US President Joe Biden and many politicians, while disparaging TikTok in their official capacity, have used TikTok in their election campaigns to court younger voters, blatantly displaying their hypocrisy and double standards. One must not underestimate the ferocity of opposition from the average TikTok user, as seen in the case of Jeff Jackson, a Democratic congressman. He used to have 2.5 million followers on TikTok, but it dropped by over 100,000 virtually overnight after he voted to ban the app. These 170 million voters would most likely vote against Biden and those members of Congress who supported the bill in the November elections.
Second, the ban will negatively impact the US economy. TikTok fuels significant growth for more than 7 million businesses and the US economy, contributing over $24 billion in GDP annually and more than 224,000 jobs in the US. One content creator, who has about 4 million followers on TikTok, said he and many other creators are experiencing “so much anger and anxiety” about the impending ban and how it will affect their lives, as they rely heavily on TikTok for their incomes.
US politicians should listen to the voices of their constituents, particularly young people, and the business community. They should change their course of action, seek mutual prosperity and coexistence with China, and adopt a more constructive and harmonious approach to international relations
Third, TikTok has already threatened to mount legal challenges and vigorously defend itself in US court. It will argue that the ban would deprive the app’s millions of users of their First Amendment rights. Organizations like the American Civil Liberties Union have expressed their support for the app. There have been successful lawsuits against such a ban. For instance, in November, a federal judge blocked a Montana law that sought to ban TikTok use across the state after the company and five content creators who use the platform sued. In 2020, federal courts blocked an executive order issued by then-president Donald Trump to ban TikTok after the company appealed against it for violating the right to free speech and due process.
Regarding the US government’s allegation that TikTok could share data with the Chinese government, TikTok has insisted that such actions have never occurred and won’t be complied with even if requested. TikTok is managed by a separate entity that is operationally independent of its parent company ByteDance, and is headquartered in Singapore. International investors, such as General Atlantic and Susquehanna, both American investment firms, own 60 percent of this company’s shares. Three of the five board directors are Americans. To ease the concern of US regulators, the company collaborated with the US authority on Project Texas in June 2022. This $1.5 billion plan involved TikTok routing all US user data to be stored in the cloud infrastructure of US software company, Oracle. The court is likely to be convinced that sufficient safeguards are in place to prevent the abuse of personal data.
Most importantly, there is no evidence to support the allegation that TikTok has breached US national security laws. As the US is a country that prides itself on the rule of law, it is incredible that the US government has acted merely on conjecture instead of hard evidence.
The court is likely to conclude that this is a classic case of selective enforcement. In March, during an interview with CNN, Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak was asked for his opinion on the proposed ban on TikTok. He said every company that tracks individuals online without their knowledge should be held accountable. Singling out TikTok for its alleged ties to the Chinese government is discriminatory and reeks of double standards. The court will take note of the fact that the US Congress has targeted only one company for data safety reasons while neglecting to take action against other social media platforms for years. Consequently, the court is likely to strike down the law, leading to a humiliating defeat for the US government and lawmakers.
The court will also consider the actions of various Western leaders, including the German chancellor, the French president and Ireland’s prime minister, who have opened TikTok accounts to promote their respective political images. There are over 1.7 billion TikTok users across the globe, who have embraced it as a versatile tool for creativity and connectivity. For them, national security was never an issue of concern.
Furthermore, the US Congress and government may have created a needless conundrum for themselves. After causing such a hoopla over TikTok, they are now aware that they cannot achieve a complete shutdown of TikTok without upsetting 170 million American users. As a way out, they demand that TikTok’s parent company sell the platform within 12 months. However, the Chinese government has indicated that it would block any deal to sell TikTok, which is highly likely in my opinion, as TikTok can afford to lose the US market, which accounts for only 10 percent of the global users. If TikTok is ultimately forced to shut down its US operation, young American users would go crazy, as Donald Trump has predicted. Anyway, in this modern technological era, even if an official ban is implemented, people determined to use TikTok will find ways to access it, such as through virtual private networks.
Lastly, a TikTok ban could lead to retaliatory trade restrictions or other actions by the Chinese government. The US should realize that just as it can take hostile actions against TikTok, China can always retaliate. A TikTok ban could also strain Sino-US relations further.
A TikTok ban would blatantly violate freedom of speech enshrined in the US Constitution and disregard the fair-competition principles that the US has been advocating. The most viable solution is to set up an international regulatory framework for online data governance, privacy standards and platform transparency. US politicians should listen to the voices of their constituents, particularly young people, and the business community. They should change their course of action, seek mutual prosperity and coexistence with China, and adopt a more constructive and harmonious approach to international relations.
The author is an honorary fellow of HKU Space and Hong Kong Metropolitan University. He is a retired deputy commissioner of the Independent Commission Against Corruption and an international anti-corruption consultant.
The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.
