The fate of TikTok’s U.S. operations is heading for another round of political theater. The powerful chair of the House Select Committee on China has pledged to keep a tight grip on oversight as ByteDance moves to shed its American arm under the rules of a 2024 law signed by Donald Trump.
Representative John Moolenaar made it clear that the upcoming transition won’t be a clean handshake and move on. “The law set clear red lines—no back-channeling on the recommendation algorithm, no operational entanglements between ByteDance and whatever replaces TikTok,” he declared.
Moolenaar also revealed he intends to bring the new TikTok leadership before Congress in a hearing next year, signaling that Washington’s scrutiny of the app will outlast any single deal on paper.
The sale may be inked, but the fight over who truly controls TikTok’s influence in the United States is only beginning.
