US government objects to TikTok request to stop November ban
- Lawyers for the administration say ByteDance-owned TikTok failed to demonstrate ‘irreparable harm’ the ban would have on the app
- There is still national security concern to consider, say the lawyers
The ban, set to begin on November 12, is the second phase of proposed restrictions by the US Commerce Department. It would prohibit American companies from doing business with the app, and TikTok said earlier in the month that, if implemented, the restrictions would effectively end the app’s operations in the US.
In the US District Court for the District of Columbia filing on Friday, lawyers for the administration said ByteDance-owned TikTok failed to demonstrate “irreparable harm” the ban would have on the app. Even if the companies are able to prove such damages, there is still national security concern to consider, said the lawyers led by Daniel Schwei at the Justice Department.
“On the other side of the balance is a formal national security and foreign affairs determination made by the president,” they said.
“The President explained that TikTok’s data-collection practices ‘threaten to allow to Chinese Communist Party access to Americans’ personal and proprietary information’, which could permit that foreign government to ‘build dossiers of personal information for blackmail, and conduct corporate espionage’.”
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“Given the strong national security harms implicated here, plaintiff’s request for emergency relief should be denied,” they said.