Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) called on Congress to pass a bill that would ban TikTok unless the social media platform’s Chinese owners divest from it.
The Kentucky Republican pushed the bill’s passage in the upper chamber during a floor speech on Monday. The legislation passed the House last month with broad support inside both parties, with a final vote of 352 in favor and 65 against.
“America’s greatest strategic rival is threatening our security right here on U.S. soil in tens of millions of [American] homes,” McConnell said, according to Axios. “I’m speaking of course of TikTok.”
“This is a matter that deserves Congress’ urgent attention,” he continued. “And I’ll support commonsense bipartisan steps to take one of Beijing’s favorite tools of coercion and espionage off the table.”
McConnell’s comments make him the highest-profile Republican to back the House bill in the Senate. The political push to take action against TikTok began under former President Donald Trump. Congress has remained largely silent on the issue until the passage of the House bill last month.
McConnell is in his final months as the top Republican in the Senate. He announced in February that he would step down as Senate Republican leader in November, a post he has held since 2006. The 82-year-old McConnell plans to finish out the rest of this term, which ends in January 2027.
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The bill’s chances in the Senate remain unclear in an election year involving an issue that has driven loud opposition from younger Americans, a primary target of Democratic politicians in 2024.
Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) has voiced support for action on TikTok, though he has not committed to bringing the House bill to the Senate floor. The legislation and threat to ban TikTok has generated dissent from leftists and younger voters. President Joe Biden has said he would sign the legislation if it reaches his desk.
More libertarian-leaning Republicans have also resisted taking action against the Chinese-owned social media platform. Trump opposes the bill because he says taking action against TikTok would empower Facebook.