英语新闻丨TikTok ban may face pushback in Senate, court

In a widely criticized move, the United States House of Representatives approved a bill on Wednesday giving TikTok's parent company ByteDance about six months to divest the US assets of the video app or face a ban. According to several US experts, the bill could stall when it goes to the Senate and could also be challenged in court.

2024年3月13日，美国众议院通过了一项法案，要求TikTok的母公司字节跳动在6个月内剥离其在美国的资产，否则将面临禁令，此举受到广泛批评。据几位美国专家称，该法案在提交参议院时可能会停滞不前，也可能在法庭上受到质疑。

"Although the House passed the bill in a 352-65 vote seeking to ban TikTok in the United States, those favoring the ban still face an uphill battle in the Senate and, probably, in court," Mei Gechlik, founder and CEO of Sinotalks, a think tank and consultancy, told China Daily.

智库和咨询公司丝络谈™顾问委员会（Sinotalks）的创始人兼首席执行官熊美英博士（Mei Gechlik）在接受《中国日报》采访时表示：“尽管众议院以352票对65票通过了该法案，企图在美国禁止抖音，但支持该禁令的人仍将在参议院面临一场艰苦的战斗，而且很可能还会发生在法庭上。”

The bill represents the latest efforts by US lawmakers to force a sale of TikTok or ban it from app stores. The legislation has been passed by the House but still must clear the US Senate. US President Joe Biden said he would sign the legislation if it is approved by Congress.

该法案代表了美国立法者迫使TikTok出售或禁止其进入应用商店的最新努力。该法案已在众议院获得通过，但仍需在参议院获得通过。美国总统拜登表示，如果国会通过该法案，他将签署该法案。

Unlike the House, the Senate includes Republican and Democrat leaders opposed to or doubtful about the bill for various reasons, including concerns over free speech, Gechlik said.

熊美英博士说，与众议院不同，参议院包括共和党和民主党领导人，他们出于各种原因反对或怀疑该法案，其中包括对言论自由的担忧。

"Such concerns could also lead to challenges in court, as multiple groups, including the American Civil Liberties Union, have suggested potential First Amendment violations," she added.

她补充说：“这种担忧也可能导致法庭上的挑战，因为包括美国公民自由联盟(American Civil Liberties Union)在内的多个团体都认为，这可能违反了第一修正案。”

Sourabh Gupta, a senior fellow at the Washington-based Institute for China-America Studies, told China Daily, "TikTok's situation is unique because it engages the US Constitution's First Amendment rights too.

总部位于华盛顿的中美研究所高级研究员苏拉布·古普塔告诉《中国日报》，“TikTok的情况是独特的，因为它也涉及美国宪法第一修正案的权利。

"This could lead to it stalling in the US Senate, as senators examine the underlying national security argument as well as the precedent of potentially banning a platform of information and exchange of views. And it takes very few in the Senate to stall a piece of legislation."

这可能导致它在美国参议院陷入僵局，因为参议员们正在审查潜在的国家安全论点，以及可能禁止信息和交换意见平台的先例。参议院只需很少的人就能阻止一项立法。”

TikTok said in a statement on Wednesday that its attention will now shift to the Senate. It criticized House lawmakers' fast-tracking of the bill and their decision to hold a closed-door briefing for members that highlighted the app's purported national security risks.

TikTok在周三的一份声明中表示，其注意力现在将转移到参议院。TikTok批评了众议院议员对该法案的快速跟进，以及他们决定为议员举行闭门简报会，强调了该应用程序所谓的国家安全风险。

"This process was secret and the bill was jammed through for one reason: it's a ban," a TikTok spokesperson said in a statement. "We are hopeful that the Senate will consider the facts, listen to their constituents and realize the impact on the economy, the 7 million small businesses and the 170 million Americans who use our service."

TikTok的一位发言人在一份声明中说：“这个过程是秘密的，该法案被强行通过的原因只有一个：它是一项禁令。我们希望参议院能够考虑事实，听取选民的意见，并意识到这对经济、700万小企业和1.7亿使用我们服务的美国人的影响。”

Speaking about the developments, Democratic Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, said, "These fields are evolving and changing so rapidly that you can do a lot of damage by moving too quickly or without the facts."

俄勒冈州民主党参议员、参议院财政委员会(Senate Finance Committee)主席罗恩·怀登(Ron Wyden)在谈到事态发展时说：“这些领域正在迅速发展和变化，如果行动太快或不了解事实，可能会造成很大损害。”

Republican Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky raised more concerns. In an opinion piece published on Wednesday in The Courier-Journal of Louisville, Kentucky, he wrote: "I hope saner minds will reflect on which is more dangerous: videos of teenagers dancing or the precedent of the US government banning speech. For me, it's an easy answer, I will defend the Bill of Rights against all comers, even, if need be, from members of my own party."

肯塔基州共和党参议员兰德·保罗提出了更多的担忧。周三，他在肯塔基州路易斯维尔的《信使报》上发表了一篇评论文章，他写道：“我希望更理智的人能反思一下，青少年跳舞的视频和美国政府禁止言论的先例，哪个更危险。对我来说，答案很简单，我将捍卫《人权法案》，反对所有人，甚至，如果有必要，反对我自己政党的成员。”

He added: "If you don't like TikTok or Facebook or YouTube, don't use them. But don't think any interpretation of the Constitution gives you the right to ban them."

他补充说：“如果你不喜欢TikTok、Facebook或YouTube，就不要使用它们。但不要认为宪法的任何解释都给了你禁止它们的权利。”

Paul also posted on X: "Reactionaries who want to ban TikTok claim the data can't be secured because the 'algorithm' is in China. Not true. The truth is the algorithm runs in the US in oracle cloud with their review of the code."

保罗还在X上发帖称:“想要禁止TikTok的反动派声称数据无法保护，因为‘算法’在中国。不是这样的。事实是，该算法在美国的甲骨文云上运行，他们对代码进行了审查。”

TikTok also could challenge the legislation in court, arguing that it violates the First Amendment of the US Constitution. After Montana banned TikTok last year, a federal judge blocked the state's measure, citing free speech concerns.

TikTok还可以在法庭上挑战这项立法，认为它违反了美国宪法第一修正案。去年蒙大拿州禁止TikTok后，一名联邦法官以言论自由为由阻止了该州的措施。

Critics also accused the US government of lacking real concerns about abuse of users' data by other social media platforms, such as Meta. The Electronic Frontier Foundation said that if the US was really concerned about China and data privacy, it would push legislation that applies to all social media companies, not just TikTok.

批评人士还指责美国政府对Meta等其他社交媒体平台滥用用户数据缺乏真正的担忧。电子前沿基金会表示，如果美国真的担心中国和数据隐私，就应该推动适用于所有社交媒体公司的立法，而不仅仅是TikTok。

Gary Hufbauer, a nonresident senior fellow at the Washington-based Peterson Institute for International Economics, told China Daily: "I'm not a TikTok user, but this is most unfortunate. There is no evidence that TikTok is spying on its users. I hope that the Senate will refuse to pass parallel legislation. The main result of banning TikTok would be to create more business for its US competitors."

总部位于华盛顿的彼得森国际经济研究所的非常驻高级研究员加里·赫夫鲍尔告诉《中国日报》：“我不是TikTok用户，但这是最不幸的。没有证据表明TikTok在监视其用户。我希望参议院拒绝通过类似的立法。禁止TikTok的主要结果将是为其美国竞争对手创造更多业务。”

Potential buyers are already circling. Former treasury secretary Steven Mnuchin told CNBC on Thursday that he was putting together a consortium to try to buy TikTok.

潜在买家已经在观望了。前财政部长史蒂文·姆努钦(Steven Mnuchin)周四对CNBC表示，他正在组建一个财团，试图收购TikTok。

 CNBC

美国全国广播公司财经频道（Consumer News and Business Channel）；

Consortium

n.财团；联合