Renee Parsons<\/p>\n
At the outset, let me share that I have no experience with TikTok, having viewed its videos less than could be counted on one hand.\u00a0 <\/span>I am, however, an unabashed devotee of the First Amendment and view the recent adoption of a ban on TikTok as nothing less than a political sting on an unconstitutional expansion of government censorship as well as an element in the neocon geopolitical target on China. \u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n While HR 7521<\/span><\/a> was approved by the House Energy and Commerce Committee<\/span><\/a> on a unanimous 50 \u2013 0 vote on March 11<\/span>th<\/sup><\/span> with minimal hearing,\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cProtecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Application Act<\/i><\/span><\/a>\u201d was immediately scheduled for a House floor vote less than 48 hours later.<\/span> \u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n The Act was brought to the House floor \u2018under suspension\u2019<\/i> which limited debate with no amendments allowed,<\/span> a common practice to deny opposition a real opportunity to publicly air its merits and allow a roll call vote to test its strength. \u00a0 \u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n In a convenient realignment of the Uniparty, it is obvious that the Federal government perceives TikTok\u2019s alleged moral decay on 170 million<\/span><\/a> GenZ as an attack on national security rather than potential election interference or that an estimated 24,000 undocumented\u00a0 <\/span>Chinese immigrants who have already crossed the US border.\u00a0<\/span><\/span>\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Touted as a ban on what former Rep. Ron Paul calls the \u2018most dangerous, anti American act since the Patriot Act<\/i>\u201d, HR 7521 banned the TikTok app on \u2018national security\u2019<\/i> grounds without providing any shred of evidence of where or how viewing the app threatens national security. \u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Predominately owned by international investors rather than the Chinese Communist party, the TikTok ban allows the President as sole authority to identify and eliminate any app or website as a \u2018national security\u2019<\/i> hazard unless its owner divests within 180 days of enactment.\u00a0 \u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n \u2026\u201d<\/span>to protect the national security of the United States from the threat posed by foreign adversary controlled applications, <\/i><\/span>such as<\/i><\/span> TikTok and any <\/i><\/span>successor application or service and any other application or service <\/i><\/span>developed or provided by ByteDance Ltd. or an entity under the control of ByteDance Ltd<\/i>..\u201d<\/span> and<\/span> \u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n \u201c..it shall be unlawful to distribute, maintain, update, enable or host foreign adversary controlled apps<\/i>\u2026\u201d well you get the point.\u00a0 <\/span>This is about more than TikTok although a convenient scapegoat\u2026<\/span><\/p>\n At first glance, it might seem reasonable to believe that the 13 page Act was totally focused on TikTok which begs the question of why it was written in unnecessarily complicated verbiage rather than more simple, straightforward legislative language.\u00a0 <\/span>The Act required an entire reading to fully understand its implications since the actual legislative language as approved by Congress is rarely ever read aloud or even mentioned during a Floor debate.\u00a0 <\/span>In other words, loopholes may exist that become more obvious, less vague or innocuous upon close scrutiny.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n House debate was clearly focused on China as the alleged \u2018foreign adversary\u2019<\/i> although other countries may qualify as \u2018foreign adversary\u2019 as Israel based on its bazillion dollar gifts over the years and US initiated multiple wars in the Middle East on behalf of its proxy for Israel. \u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n The final vote was a spectacular 352 \u2013 65<\/span><\/a> with 15 Republicans and 50 Democrats voting against which occurs, most often, on behalf of AIPAC, or in this case, on behalf of the ADL<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0 <\/span>The vote was \u2018Spectacular\u2019 given its timing and urgency rather than a commitment to world peace or banning corruption or buttressing the US Constitution \u2013 as the Congress rarely unites to benefit the American people or to prohibit US participation in espionage or election interference via any foreign adversary or any unilateral action closing the US border. \u00a0 \u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n While the US makes no secret of spying or conducting surveillance on its own citizens, the US would prefer to limit that right to its own homegrown intel networks as it spies directly on the Chinese with our own three letter agencies. \u00a0 \u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n As Rep. Tom Massie (Ky) labeled the Act a Trojan Horse which has the intent to mislead the public or deceive its real purpose; therefore raising the potential future use of the Act against other social media sites like X or Rumble<\/span><\/a><\/span> or to eliminate certain politically offensive websites, all in the name of protecting Americans from TikTok.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n