President Joe Biden’s administration is considering ways to keep TikTok available in the United States if a ban that’s scheduled to go into effect Sunday proceeds, according to three people familiar with the discussions.
“Americans shouldn’t expect to see TikTok suddenly banned on Sunday,” an administration official said, adding that officials are “exploring options” for how to implement the law so TikTok does not go dark Sunday.
If the administration moves forward with any such plan, it would mean the popular app’s going down would not define his last full day in office, and it would defer the issue to Donald Trump, who will be inaugurated Monday.
Mike Waltz, Trump’s incoming national security adviser, told Fox News on Wednesday that Trump is ready to intervene to preserve access to the Chinese-owned video app in the American marketplace. And Pam Bondi, his pick for attorney general, refused to commit to enforcing the ban when she was asked about it at her Senate confirmation hearing Wednesday.
The moves represent parallel efforts by the rival presidents to execute an end-run around Congress and the Supreme Court, which is teed up to rule on the ban at any time.