(Julianna Frieman, Headline USA) President Donald Trump revealed Tuesday during a press conference whether he would consent to billionaire ally Elon Musk buying TikTok.
Trump signed an executive order Monday giving ByteDance, the Chinese company that owns TikTok, a 75-day extension to make a deal with the U.S. before the popular social media app goes dark for 170 million American users.
A reporter asked, “Are you open to Elon buying TikTok?”
Trump responded, “I would be if he wanted to buy it,” before saying he would “negotiate in front of the media.”
JUST IN: 🇺🇸 President Trump says he is open to Elon Musk buying TikTok. pic.twitter.com/NVJKQLi45O
— Watcher.Guru (@WatcherGuru) January 21, 2025
Trump called TikTok “worthless” without permission to operate in the U.S. as he proposed a deal for America to have partial ownership of the video-sharing platform with China.
Musk bought Twitter in 2022 after the social media platform interfered in the 2020 election to help former President Joe Biden’s campaign.
The SpaceX and Tesla boss rebranded the popular app as X, which has since flourished as a haven for free speech.
TikTok temporarily shut down in the U.S. on Sunday after a law signed by Biden took effect. After Trump announced on Truth Social that he would take executive action to give ByteDance more time to make a deal, TikTok restored its services in the country.
Trump wrote in his Truth Social Post on Sunday, “I would like the United States to have a 50% ownership position in a joint venture. By doing this, we save TikTok, keep it in good hands and allow it to stay up.”
— Trump War Room (@TrumpWarRoom) January 19, 2025
TikTok shouted out Trump in its in-app error message and restoration of services note, thanking Trump for his willingness to work out a deal.
While TikTok was blocked early Sunday, Musk teased that he would revive popular video-sharing platform Vine, which permanently shut down just three days before Trump first took office in January 2017.
We’re looking into it
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 19, 2025
“We’re looking into it,” Musk wrote.
Musk strongly spoke out against a TikTok ban, including in April 2024 when Biden signed the ban into law.
On Sunday, the social media mogul reposted his comments from April and slammed the TikTok ban as an infringement on free speech.
I have been against a TikTok ban for a long time, because it goes against freedom of speech.
That said, the current situation where TikTok is allowed to operate in America, but 𝕏 is not allowed to operate in China is unbalanced.
Something needs to change. https://t.co/YVu2hkZEVZ
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 19, 2025
“I have been against a TikTok ban for a long time, because it goes against freedom of speech,” Musk wrote on X. “That said, the current situation where TikTok is allowed to operate in America, but X is not allowed to operate in China is unbalanced. Something needs to change.”
Julianna Frieman is a freelance writer published by the Daily Caller, Headline USA, The Federalist, and the American Spectator. Follow her on Twitter at @JuliannaFrieman.
