A couple days ago, US President Donald Trump signed an executive order banning any transactions with TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance. Today, a new report suggests that TikTok is planning on fighting back against the order by suing the government.
According to NPR’s report, TikTok is planning on suing the Trump government as soon as this Tuesday, challenging the government’s order effectively banning TikTok in the US. A source directly involved in the lawsuit has said that the suit will be filed in the US District Court for the Southern District of California.
TikTok’s lawsuit is based on the argument that President Trump’s executive order is unconstitutional since it didn’t give TikTok a chance to respond. Moreover, TikTok is arguing that the reasons cited by the order are baseless.
The source said “It’s based on pure speculation and conjecture. The order has no findings of fact, just reiterates rhetoric about China that has been kicking around.”
Meanwhile, The White House reportedly declined to comment on the report. However, White House spokesman Judd Deere was quoted as saying “The Administration is committed to protecting the American people from all cyber related threats to critical infrastructure, public health and safety, and our economic and national security.”
TikTok has been under fire in various countries recently. The app was banned in India citing similar security reasons, and that ban has been cited in the White House’s executive order as well. It remains to be seen how this lawsuit unfolds once TikTok files it.
