Will the TikTok bill move forward? Mitch McConnell pushes for legislation that could effectively ban the app

WASHINGTON – Nearly a month after the House quickly pushed through a bill that could effectively ban TikTok in the United States, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., is rallying his chamber to take up the effort targeting the popular app.

During a speech on the Senate floor Monday morning, McConnell argued that the Chinese government is manipulating and surveilling Americans through the platform – a matter "that deserves Congress' urgent attention."

"All sorts of social media platforms can be fountains of disinformation and propaganda," McConnell said. "But with TikTok, we’re not talking about meddling or hijacking an American platform. In this case, PRC (People's Republic of China) influence and control has been baked in from the beginning."

Here's what you need to know about the legislation senators are currently considering – and where it goes next.

Is the TikTok bill moving forward?

McConnell's speech amps up pressure on Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., to stake out a position on the controversial bill, which has drawn fierce, immediate backlash from many of the platform's 170 million American users.

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Some younger Democrats have argued the legislation could be a political misstep in an election year where candidates on the left are relying heavily on young voters.

The House's bill would require TikTok's Chinese parent company, ByteDance, to sell the social media app or be practically banned. App stores and web hosting companies would be barred from offering the app for new downloads or updating it on users' phones.

But while the House pushed a TikTok-related bill out of committee and quickly approved it in a sweeping, bipartisan vote, the process is moving slowly in the Senate.

Schumer has so far been non-committal about a path forward for the TikTok legislation, saying instead that he is considering the legislation alongside the chairs of relevant committees. Legislation often moves at a more measured pace through Senate committees, facing delays before actually being taken up for a vote.

Now, it's up to lawmakers in the upper chamber to decide whether they want the bill to move swiftly to the Senate floor, or whether they want to pause as they consider the legislation that could impact millions of Americans online.

Senators haven't embraced the House's TikTok legislation

Senators of both parties have received the House's bill with mixed reactions. While most say they believe TikTok's connections to the Chinese government pose a serious national security threat, many have raised concerns that targeting a single company could pose legal issues.

But McConnell argued that requiring ByteDance to sell the platform – as the House-passed bill directs – "would land squarely within established Constitutional precedent."

"It would begin to turn back the tide of an enormous threat to America’s children and to our nation’s prospects in the defining competition of the 21st century," he said. However, McConnell stopped short of directly calling for his fellow senators to pass the House bill.

Several senators are considering their own version of the legislation. Commerce Committee Chair Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., said Monday that the House bill "could be better," raising concerns about its ability to stand up to legal scrutiny. If the Senate passes its own version of legislation addressing TikTok, it would ultimately have to be squared with the House legislation before heading to President Joe Biden's desk.