Speaker Pelosi Undecided on Whether the House Will Ban TikTok on Government Devices

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in Washington, on Dec. 1, 2022. Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) has not yet committed to bringing a Senate-passed bill to the House which seeks to prohibit Chinese-owned video app TikTok on government devices.

“We’re checking with the administration—just in terms of language—not in terms of being opposed to the idea,” Pelosi told reporters on Thursday, according to Reuters. “I don’t know that that will be on the agenda next week, but it’s very, very important.”

House minority leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) has called on Pelosi to allow a vote on the bill immediately. The Senate bill must be approved by the House before next week when the congressional session comes to an end. Only then will the bill be sent to President Joe Biden for consideration.

The bill, “No TikTok on Government Devices Act,” was introduced by Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) back in April last year. It seeks to ultimately ban TikTok or any of its successors or services that are provided and developed by parent company ByteDance, and any other entities of the company.

An exception is provided for law enforcement activities, national security interests, and security researchers as long as they “develop and document risk mitigation actions for such use,” the bill states.

Hawley called TikTok a “Trojan horse” for the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). “It’s a major security risk to the United States, and until it is forced to sever ties with China completely, it has no place on government devices … States across the U.S. are banning TikTok on government devices. It’s time for Joe Biden and the Democrats to help do the same,” he said in a statement.

State Action Against TikTok

Multiple Republican governors have announced a ban on the use of TikTok by state agencies or on state government devices due to concerns about security.

This includes South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem, Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds, Texas Governor Greg Abbott, Maryland Governor Larry Hogan, South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster, and Utah Governor Spencer Cox.

In a recent interview with Fox, Cox pointed out that the CCP is accessing TikTok data of U.S. citizens, which he says is “problematic.”

“We know that the Chinese version of TikTok is very different than the American version of TikTok, that it could be a positive in the lives of our young people, but the way it’s being used in Utah and the United States, it’s not helping anyone. It’s only making us dumber and much worse off,” he said.

Public Support, Foreign Governments

A survey published by Rasmussen Reports on Dec. 9 found that 68 percent of likely American voters supported proposals by Congress members for federal legislation to ban TikTok in the country. Out of this, 43 percent “strongly support” such a ban.

TikTok is also under close scrutiny in nations allied with the United States. In the United Kingdom, for example, experts have warned the government not to trust TikTok’s pledge to keep user data from the CCP.

The UK Security Minister Tom Tugendhat recently stated that foreign states like China have “considerable sway” over TikTok algorithms, raising the possibility that the app might be used to spread false narratives.

In Canada, the government is keeping tabs on TikTok, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said at Parliament Hill on Dec. 15.

“There’s a range of ways that we’re actively keeping Canadians safe … The Communications Security Establishment is one of the best cybersecurity agencies in the world, and they’re watching very carefully,” he said about investigating TikTok.