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Illustration: Brendan Lynch/Axios
A group of House Democrats wants President Trump to stop extending the TikTok ban deadline, per a letter shared exclusively with Axios.
Why it matters: Congress isn't forgetting that a bipartisan law requiring TikTok to be purchased by an American owner or banned is simply not being enforced as the Trump administration slow-walks a deal.
- Both Democrats and Republicans have said they're concerned that a TikTok deal still hasn't been made and that another Chinese company, DeepSeek, has not yet been banned from use in the U.S.
Driving the news: The June 19 deadline for complying with the divest-or-ban law, signed by former President Biden and an idea pushed for by the Trump administration in his first term, is fast approaching after Trump delayed enforcing the law twice.
- A TikTok deal that would abide by the letter of the law doesn't appear to be close.
- Per a report in the New York Post, Trump is likely to announce a third delay amid ongoing China-U.S. trade negotiations.
What they're saying: A letter led by Rep. Josh Gottheimer, signed by Reps. Ritchie Torres, Seth Moulton, Tom Suozzi, Jim Costa and Brad Sherman, urges compliance with the law.
- "You and your Administration have granted TikTok multiple extensions that have delayed both TikTok's qualified divestment from China and the much-preferred transfer of TikTok to American ownership."
- "This stance is confusing given your Administration has simultaneously shown itself to be capable of aggressively investigating American social media and technology companies."
The members also question Trump over not banning DeepSeek, calling it an "AI company with clear ties to the Chinese Communist Party" and citing individual state and global bans.
- American social media companies deserve scrutiny too, they write, but they are accountable under U.S. law, while "TikTok and DeepSeek remain opaque, unregulated, aggressive in their data collection practices, deceptive in their content and privacy policies, and subject to influence from adversarial governments."
- Gottheimer introduced a bipartisan bill in February that would ban DeepSeek from government devices.
What's next: The lawmakers ask Trump for clarity regarding the administration's strategy around TikTok as the June 19 deadline looms and U.S. and Chinese officials hash out trade and tariffs.
