US President-elect Donald Trump will find a way to save TikTok before a ban on the app takes effect this weekend, the new national security adviser said.
Congressman Mike Waltz, a Republican from Florida, said Trump would intervene if the Supreme Court upheld a law banning the platform in the United States unless it is sold by January 19.
Last week, the Biden administration was also looking for ways to prevent TikTok from suddenly disappearing, according to an NBC News report.
Chinese owner ByteDance said it plans to shut down the app for its 170 million American users by Sunday.
“We will take action to prevent TikTok from going dark,” Waltz said Thursday.
He noted that the law allows ByteDance service to be extended for 90 days if significant progress is made toward a sale.
“This gives President Trump enough time to continue running TikTok,” Waltz said.
A day earlier, the new national security adviser hinted on Fox News that Trump was planning to issue an executive order in an attempt to suspend the ban.
However, it is unclear whether any such measure could circumvent the law passed by Congress.
The app was banned on national security grounds, due to concerns that its data could be collected by the Chinese Communist Party.
But according to the New York Times, Trump invited TikTok CEO, Xu Ziqiu, to attend his presidential inauguration next Monday, and to sit in a position of honor on the podium.
Trump had previously asked the Supreme Court to postpone the ban – which will take effect one day before he is sworn in – so that he can seek a “political” solution.
Congress passed a bipartisan law last year giving TikTok's owner, ByteDance, nine months to find an approved U.S. buyer or face a platform ban in the United States.
The legislation does not prevent the use of the application, but it will require technology giants such as Apple and Google to stop offering it and prevent updates, which analysts indicate will eliminate it over time.
President Joe Biden signed the bill into law last April as part of a package that provided aid to Ukraine and Israel.
But NBC News reports that Biden has also been considering ways to keep the app available if the ban goes into effect.
Under that plan, they would postpone the case, according to three people familiar with the matter who spoke to NBC.
TikTok and ByteDance deny their affiliation with the Chinese government. They also ruled out selling.
The Supreme Court heard TikTok and Bytedance's arguments against the law last week.
The decision is expected to be issued any day.
Both Biden and Trump have reversed their positions on stage.
Trump tried to ban the app during his first term in office, but said during his election campaign this year that he would protect it.
