Bobby Allen
Appearances
NPR News Now
NPR News: 12-18-2024 6PM EST
The high court will hear arguments on January 10th, nine days before the law is set to take effect. Bobby Allen, NPR News.
NPR News Now
NPR News: 12-18-2024 6PM EST
The Supreme Court has accepted TikTok's emergency motion to review a law President Biden signed in April. The law bans TikTok nationwide unless it is sold to a non-Chinese company. It is meant to address lawmakers' national security concerns over possible Chinese influence.
NPR News Now
NPR News: 12-18-2024 6PM EST
Earlier this month, a federal appeals court affirmed the ban law, saying it actually protects free speech by preventing an adversarial government from censoring content. Lawyers for TikTok say singling out an app for shutdown used by roughly half of America is an unprecedented violation of the First Amendment.
NPR News Now
NPR News: 02-12-2025 6PM EST
Musk and the White House did not return requests for comment. President Trump says Musk will be removed from any government work that could help any one of his six businesses. Bobby Allen, NPR News.
NPR News Now
NPR News: 02-12-2025 6PM EST
It's called X Money. Musk announced last month that the service has partnered with Visa. The plan is to launch a peer-to-peer money transfer service similar to Venmo or Apple Pay. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau began taking steps late last year to regulate digital wallets. Former CFEB head Richard Cordray says abolishing the agency would benefit X and Musk.
NPR News Now
NPR News: 04-02-2025 6PM EDT
It's not noticeable by using the app, but TikTok is technically operating in violation of a law Congress passed requiring the service to sever ties with China. The Trump administration has promised not to enforce the law, while President Trump holds something of a public auction for the hit app. Now, President Trump is set to meet with Vice President J.D.
NPR News Now
NPR News: 04-02-2025 6PM EDT
Vance and other advisors to weigh TikTok's options. Software company Oracle, owned by Trump supporter and billionaire Larry Ellison, appears to be leading the pack of bidders. The New York Times reported Amazon has sent in a last-minute TikTok offer. Yet one key hurdle remains, winning the approval of Chinese regulators, who may use TikTok as leverage in tariff negotiations. Bobby Allen, NPR News.
NPR News Now
NPR News: 03-04-2025 5PM EST
Thank you for watching. NPR found that Doge's documented savings have been grossly overstated, including an item boasting of an $8 billion savings when it should have been $8 million. The Doge site claims its cost-cutting work has saved taxpayers more than $100 billion, but only about $2 billion of that can be confirmed with federal contract data. Bobby Allen, NPR News.
NPR News Now
NPR News: 03-13-2025 8AM EDT
Tesla vehicles, including a Cybertruck, were arrayed on the South Lawn as Musk dazzled Trump like a salesman. Richard Painter is a former ethics lawyer in the White House under George W. Bush. He says the limits of what is ethical in the White House are being stretched.
NPR News Now
NPR News: 03-13-2025 8AM EDT
The Trump-Tesla photo op came as Tesla stock price tumbled and as Tesla storefronts and superchargers have been hit with vandalism nationwide. Trump now says violence against Tesla dealerships will be labeled as domestic terrorism. Bobby Allen, NPR News.
NPR News Now
NPR News: 04-10-2025 9AM EDT
Lawyers for OpenAI are asking a federal judge to stop Musk's attacks against the leading AI firm, saying he has made it his project to take down OpenAI. The bitter feud between Musk and OpenAI has been long running. Musk was a co-founder of OpenAI, but split away from the company before it unveiled chat GPT in late 2022. Musk has since launched a competing firm called XAI.
NPR News Now
NPR News: 04-10-2025 9AM EDT
In recent months, Musk has sued OpenAI, saying it abandoned its nonprofit mission and misled early investors. And in February, Musk submitted an unsolicited bid to take over OpenAI, which the company dismissed as an unserious publicity grab. Bobby Allen, NPR News.
NPR News Now
NPR News: 04-04-2025 6PM EDT
White House negotiators were all set to announce the details of a TikTok deal, but it never happened. Behind the scenes, talks devolved into chaos. Among the factors that complicated the plan was Trump's firing of several National Security Council officials. One of them was running the TikTok deal.
NPR News Now
NPR News: 04-04-2025 6PM EDT
With Trump delaying the ban's start date, the clock on the deal to take over the China-based app has been reset. Under a federal law Congress passed last year, TikTok is technically operating illegally in the U.S. with its ties to Beijing. But the Trump administration says it will continue not enforcing the law for another two and a half months. Bobby Allen, NPR News.
Up First from NPR
Facebook And MAGA, Winter Virus Season, LA Palisades Fire
Well, it used to be that posts that were flagged by enough users underwent a fact-checking process by third-party professional fact-checkers. And when they were done, the post got a label. Now that is over. In its place is what's known as a community note system. This was inspired by how it works on Elon Musk's X.
Up First from NPR
Facebook And MAGA, Winter Virus Season, LA Palisades Fire
The fact-checking process is crowdsourced to regular users, and when the users reach some kind of consensus, a note is added to the post. That's big change one. Second big change, Steve, restrictions will be lifted on topics like immigration and gender identity. Currently, these protections are in place to curb hate speech. Now they are dismantled.
Up First from NPR
Facebook And MAGA, Winter Virus Season, LA Palisades Fire
In an Instagram video announcement, Zuckerberg says, Meta's speech policing has become too aggressive.
Up First from NPR
Facebook And MAGA, Winter Virus Season, LA Palisades Fire
And to say this is a big reversal is an understatement. After the 2016 presidential election, Zuckerberg himself came up with this fact-checking system. It followed revelations, of course, that Russia exploited Facebook to divide the country and boost the Trump campaign. Now Zuckerberg is abandoning the very fact-checking system that he helped create.
Up First from NPR
Facebook And MAGA, Winter Virus Season, LA Palisades Fire
He didn't say so explicitly, but yes, Zuckerberg's framing is quite notable. In his video, he said speech is being censored on Meta's platforms. It's an allegation Republicans have made for years and until now, an allegation he has fought against. Now, he is leaving some limits in place. One's
Up First from NPR
Facebook And MAGA, Winter Virus Season, LA Palisades Fire
on speech that encourage crimes like terrorism, child sexual exploitation, and scams, but more lax rules also follow several other developments, Steve.
Up First from NPR
Facebook And MAGA, Winter Virus Season, LA Palisades Fire
Okay, Meta donating a million dollars to Trump's inaugural fund, Meta tapping Republican lobbyist Joel Kaplan to be Meta's global affairs officer, and putting Trump supporter Dana White, the president of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, on Meta's board of directors. So, Taken altogether, I called up Meta observer Brendan Nyhan.
Up First from NPR
Facebook And MAGA, Winter Virus Season, LA Palisades Fire
He's a political scientist at Dartmouth College, and here is how he sees it.
Up First from NPR
Facebook And MAGA, Winter Virus Season, LA Palisades Fire
Couple reasons. Trump has been attacking Zuckerberg for years. Trump believes Zuckerberg's measures in 2020 to combat disinformation and bolster reliable election information was a type of election interference. Trump even threatened to throw Zuckerberg in prison if Meta did the same in 2024.
Up First from NPR
Facebook And MAGA, Winter Virus Season, LA Palisades Fire
On top of that, federal agencies have been investigating Meta over whether it has used its dominance to hurt competitors and And one big case Meta is facing was brought by the Federal Trade Commission back in 2020, so during Trump's first term. And that case is set to go to trial in April. NPR's Bobby Allen, thanks for your reporting. Thanks, Steve.
Up First from NPR
Canada Tariffs, Education Department Targeted, DOGE
Quite a bit. Musk's deputies are moving very fast. In just the first two weeks of the Trump administration, they have intervened at the Treasury Department, which, you know, processes trillions of dollars of payments every year. And it's not just Treasury. Doge is involved in the Office of Personnel Management, looking for ways to slash the federal payroll.
Up First from NPR
Canada Tariffs, Education Department Targeted, DOGE
They're analyzing the government's real estate holdings. In sum, Doge... at the direction of Musk, is barreling into vast swaths of the federal government and promising to divide and conquer what he sees as the deep state. Not that unlike the way Musk bulldozed Twitter, and then when he purchased it, of course, he renamed it X. I would not say that this has been the most transparent effort.
Up First from NPR
Canada Tariffs, Education Department Targeted, DOGE
Yeah, well, in Congress, Republicans have been mostly quiet, but Democrats are sounding the alarm. Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer called Doge, quote, a shadow government conducting a hostile takeover. Sharp words. And that gets at one of the questions Doge is facing. Can Musk legally have this much access and control over the federal government?
Up First from NPR
Canada Tariffs, Education Department Targeted, DOGE
And then there are other questions, Steve, about whether Doge creates conflicts of interest, because as we know, Musk runs six companies, including rocket company SpaceX, electric vehicle company Tesla. while Musk is also a senior advisor to President Trump. And we learned just yesterday that the White House has made Musk a special government employee.
Up First from NPR
Canada Tariffs, Education Department Targeted, DOGE
It's essentially a temporary government job. It can't run longer than 130 days. And Doge itself was stood up as a temporary organization to radically cut costs in government. But Musk's exact remit is kind of unknown. It's a little murky. Government watchdogs, though, are worried he is going to operate with no guardrails.
Up First from NPR
Canada Tariffs, Education Department Targeted, DOGE
Now, President Trump said Musk is acting only with the explicit approval of the White House and that, quote, where we think there's a conflict or a problem, we won't let him go near it. That's what Trump said recently. But experts I spoke to aren't so sure. Richard Painter was the White House's top ethics lawyer in the George W. Bush administration.
Up First from NPR
Canada Tariffs, Education Department Targeted, DOGE
And Painter says the level of access Musk seems to have sure does look like there are very few checks on him.
Up First from NPR
Canada Tariffs, Education Department Targeted, DOGE
So unprecedented is a word very much overused in this political moment. But Painter says Doge is indeed charting new territory.
Up First from NPR
Canada Tariffs, Education Department Targeted, DOGE
Yes, Doge has been hit with multiple lawsuits over its legality. The most recent one came yesterday. Unions representing federal employees sued to block Doge's access to the Treasury Department's payment system.
Up First from NPR
Canada Tariffs, Education Department Targeted, DOGE
They're concerned about Musk and his deputies having direct access to millions of people's tax refunds, veterans' benefits, disability checks, and the private information of federal employees. So we will see, Steve, what happens in court, but... Experts tell me that unless a judge steps in, Doge is expected to only grow its presence inside of the federal government.
Up First from NPR
Canada Tariffs, Education Department Targeted, DOGE
Yeah, for some of the agencies in Doge's crosshairs, you know, their opening bid is to completely dismantle the agencies, right? But what may end up happening in the end is just a smaller version of the agencies that Doge is going after. So fewer employees and fewer resources, but still existing in some form. We'll just have to see. NPR's Bobby Allen, thanks so much. Thanks, Steve.
Up First from NPR
Wisconsin Supreme Court Race, Florida's Special Elections, Trump's Trade War
Well, you know, as you started to indicate, these two special elections in Florida are all about President Trump. He looked to the state when it came time to stock his cabinet. You know, remember his first pick for attorney general was Congressman Matt Gaetz, who represented the first district in the panhandle. Gates later withdrew his nomination and left Congress, leaving the seat open.
Up First from NPR
Wisconsin Supreme Court Race, Florida's Special Elections, Trump's Trade War
The other seat is in Florida's 6th District on the East Coast. It was held by Trump's now National Security Advisor, Mike Walz. Trump won both of those districts in November by more than 30 points, so Republicans are favored to hold on to the seats. But a lot of things have changed since Trump started carrying out his agenda, and Democrats have contributed millions of dollars to both races.
Up First from NPR
Wisconsin Supreme Court Race, Florida's Special Elections, Trump's Trade War
They think they're competitive in both of them. All right, so tell us about the candidates. Well, in both districts, the Republican candidates have close ties to Trump. In the panhandle, Florida's chief financial officer, Jimmy Patronus, is running with Trump's endorsement. His opponent is Democrat Gay Valamont, who lost in November by more than 30 points to Matt Gaetz.
Up First from NPR
Wisconsin Supreme Court Race, Florida's Special Elections, Trump's Trade War
This is the first congressional district up near Pensacola where there's a lot of military bases and a lot of veterans. Valamont's been talking about the Trump administration cuts to the VA, so she's hoping that will resonate. She's raised more than $6 million, several times what her opponent has pulled in.
Up First from NPR
Wisconsin Supreme Court Race, Florida's Special Elections, Trump's Trade War
In the other district on Florida's east coast, Republican State Senator Randy Fine is running, also with Trump's endorsement. Back when Florida Governor Ron DeSantis was challenging Trump for the GOP presidential nomination, Fine was one of just a handful of Republicans in the state legislature who snubbed DeSantis and backed Trump. And Trump referenced that in a campaign call for Fine last week.
Up First from NPR
Wisconsin Supreme Court Race, Florida's Special Elections, Trump's Trade War
Fine's opponent is Democrat Josh Wheal. He's a schoolteacher who's raised some $10 million. Again, that's several times what his opponent has pulled in.
Up First from NPR
Wisconsin Supreme Court Race, Florida's Special Elections, Trump's Trade War
Well, they think they have a shot at doing it, especially in the 6th District on the East Coast. Two recent polls there show Wheel is just three or four points behind Fine, which is within the margin of error. Democrats see these special elections as a place to begin rallying a party that saw big losses in November.
Up First from NPR
Wisconsin Supreme Court Race, Florida's Special Elections, Trump's Trade War
The National Democratic Party chair, Ken Martin, was here this weekend campaigning for both candidates. He pointed to special elections in Pennsylvania last week in which Democrats won two legislative seats that had been Republicans.
Up First from NPR
Wisconsin Supreme Court Race, Florida's Special Elections, Trump's Trade War
And we won that in Pennsylvania. Martin says, you know, even if they come up short, though, the Democratic candidates in Florida will overperform expectations. It's clear also that Republicans, including President Trump, are worried about every congressional race and the possibility that they could lose their narrow majority in Congress.
Up First from NPR
Wisconsin Supreme Court Race, Florida's Special Elections, Trump's Trade War
That's why last week we saw Trump pull Congressman Elise Stefanik's nomination for U.N. ambassador. Instead of going to the U.N. now, she's going to be remaining in Congress. That's NPR's Greg Allen in Miami. Greg, thanks.
Up First from NPR
Supreme Court Hears TikTok Case, Syrians Return Home, French Rape Trial Verdicts
Good morning.
Up First from NPR
Supreme Court Hears TikTok Case, Syrians Return Home, French Rape Trial Verdicts
Well, in short, because TikTok requested an emergency review. And this is TikTok's last legal shot, right? The company has been fighting a law that is set to take effect on January 19th that bans the app nationwide unless it splits off from its Chinese parent company ByteDance.
Up First from NPR
Supreme Court Hears TikTok Case, Syrians Return Home, French Rape Trial Verdicts
It recently lost a lower court appeal, and now the Supreme Court has scheduled expedited oral arguments, and the hearing is happening in three weeks. What are the main issues the court is being asked to resolve? Yeah, the case is about the balance between free speech and the possible threat of a foreign adversary.
Up First from NPR
Supreme Court Hears TikTok Case, Syrians Return Home, French Rape Trial Verdicts
TikTok has long said that the Chinese government doesn't collect data on Americans and does not use the app to push propaganda. But U.S. officials say the risk of that happening is just too high and that the app has to be put out of business unless it sheds its China-based owner. Legal scholars say because of the First Amendment, government restrictions on speech are very hard to uphold in court.
Up First from NPR
Supreme Court Hears TikTok Case, Syrians Return Home, French Rape Trial Verdicts
Usually the government can only suppress speech if it's really narrowly tailored to deal with a really specific problem. And a lower court ruled that the Chinese issue is actually enough to justify the ban. But now the Supreme Court is reviewing it and they could just come down differently.
Up First from NPR
Supreme Court Hears TikTok Case, Syrians Return Home, French Rape Trial Verdicts
Yeah, that's right. The 170 million Americans on the app and actually TikTok's own free speech rights, they say, as a corporation because they have a L.A.-based company. And using the algorithm and pushing content, courts have shown, is another type of free speech. So there's kind of two free speeches at play here.
Up First from NPR
Supreme Court Hears TikTok Case, Syrians Return Home, French Rape Trial Verdicts
Oh, yeah. Yeah. So if the court overturns the law, you know, business as usual for the app. But if it is upheld, it could mean the app is going away very soon. The law is slated to start, you know, in early January. And at that point, TikTok, you know, will be kicked out of app stores on Apple and Android devices. So you won't be able to download it. And the app will lose web hosting services.
Up First from NPR
Supreme Court Hears TikTok Case, Syrians Return Home, French Rape Trial Verdicts
So, you know, all the companies that provide back end support for TikTok, they'll have to drop the company. And if this happens, Michelle, it's not like the app's going to disappear from everyone's phone overnight or something. It's just going to get buggy. It's going to get slow. And eventually it's not going to be able to get software updates. So it'll stop working.
Up First from NPR
Supreme Court Hears TikTok Case, Syrians Return Home, French Rape Trial Verdicts
You know, backing up for a moment here, though, you know, never before has the Supreme Court taken on a case over the U.S. government trying to shut down a massive social media platform. So this is entering some uncharted territory. And, you know, President-elect Donald Trump's administration is watching very closely. And where does Trump stand on this? Trump has given mixed signals on TikTok.
Up First from NPR
Supreme Court Hears TikTok Case, Syrians Return Home, French Rape Trial Verdicts
He said he wanted to save the app and that he credits it with helping young voters turn out for him. But, you know, just this weekend, he said on NBC's Meet the Press if he will rescue the app. And he gave kind of an unclear, wishy-washy answer. Remember, Trump tried to ban TikTok during his first term and was not successful.
Up First from NPR
Supreme Court Hears TikTok Case, Syrians Return Home, French Rape Trial Verdicts
No matter what, the court decides that the Trump administration has a ton of power here. If the Supreme Court upholds his law, his administration will be tasked with interpreting and enforcing it. So if TikTok loses at the Supreme Court, they're hoping Trump will just step in and rescue the app anyway. That is NPR's Bobby Allen. Bobby, thank you. Thanks, Michelle.
Up First from NPR
Trump's New Tariffs, Global Tariff Reactions, TikTok Deadline
Yeah, for several reasons. First, Oracle already operates almost all of TikTok's cloud, so Oracle systems are already supporting the app. Secondly, Oracle has experience with high-level national security data. For instance, Oracle does cloud computer work for parts of the government, including the CIA.
Up First from NPR
Trump's New Tariffs, Global Tariff Reactions, TikTok Deadline
And finally, Oracle is run by billionaire Trump supporter Larry Ellison, and he has been setting the stage, Layla, for this deal for years by warming up to Trump, by defending Trump. Ellison even hammered out this deal that we're talking about right now, which involves leasing TikTok's algorithm from its current owner, the Chinese company ByteDance. Leasing an algorithm. Is that even a thing? No.
Up First from NPR
Trump's New Tariffs, Global Tariff Reactions, TikTok Deadline
No, it's not really a thing, to be honest. It's extremely unusual. But a source close to the negotiations explained the logic behind it this way. A new U.S. entity would be created, led by Oracle, that can oversee TikTok. Okay.
Up First from NPR
Trump's New Tariffs, Global Tariff Reactions, TikTok Deadline
And this new entity would lease TikTok's algorithm from ByteDance that would get around having to have the Chinese government sign off on the selling of the algorithm, which has always been an open question as to whether Beijing would approve that or not.
Up First from NPR
Trump's New Tariffs, Global Tariff Reactions, TikTok Deadline
Yeah, it depends on how you see that, right? It's been a very divisive thing in the White House, which is full of China hawks. And this is the big question, whether leasing the TikTok algorithm would mean China does not control it. This gets to why Congress passed a law forcing TikTok in China to break up in the first place, as you've mentioned.
Up First from NPR
Trump's New Tariffs, Global Tariff Reactions, TikTok Deadline
And lawmakers of both parties remain concerned that China will use TikTok to influence Americans to steal their data. Trump is hoping this deal, though, will put those fears to rest, but there is no guarantee.
Up First from NPR
Trump's New Tariffs, Global Tariff Reactions, TikTok Deadline
Yeah, Trump has set this Saturday as the deadline for when TikTok needs to be sold. Most are expecting a deal to be announced sometime before then. The question becomes, how is China going to respond? Under the Oracle deal under consideration in the White House, they're making a concession to ByteDance by allowing ByteDance to keep a minority stake in the company.
Up First from NPR
Trump's New Tariffs, Global Tariff Reactions, TikTok Deadline
It's worth noting that, you know, Trump's stiff tariffs on Chinese imports are part of the TikTok conversation. Chinese authorities, I think, were hoping TikTok could be used as leverage to get a better deal on tariffs, meaning, you know, if China supported a TikTok deal, maybe they would get some relief on tariffs. But it doesn't quite look like that is what happened.
Up First from NPR
Trump's New Tariffs, Global Tariff Reactions, TikTok Deadline
No, Mr. Beast doesn't have a chance. It's really sad, I know.
Up First from NPR
Zelenskyy Visits DC, Tate Brothers In Florida, USAID Standoff, AOC and DOJ
Well, you know, he and his brother face charges both in Romania and in the United Kingdom for being part of a criminal enterprise that allegedly lured women to Romania where they were sexually exploited. Andrew Tate also faces a rape charge.
Up First from NPR
Zelenskyy Visits DC, Tate Brothers In Florida, USAID Standoff, AOC and DOJ
In December, a Romanian court said that the case against the Tates couldn't go to trial, though, because of procedural and legal mistakes that had been made by prosecutors. The case does remain open, though, and the brothers are supposed to be available to return to Romania to face charges when the time comes. But many are skeptical they will return now. We'll see.
Up First from NPR
Zelenskyy Visits DC, Tate Brothers In Florida, USAID Standoff, AOC and DOJ
Here's what Andrew Tate had to say yesterday after arriving in Fort Lauderdale.
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Zelenskyy Visits DC, Tate Brothers In Florida, USAID Standoff, AOC and DOJ
Tate says the charges against him and his brother are false and they're based on lies that he says have been concocted by the media.
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Zelenskyy Visits DC, Tate Brothers In Florida, USAID Standoff, AOC and DOJ
Right. Well, you know, he's a former kickboxing champion who first became well-known nearly 10 years ago in the British version of the reality show Big Brother. He rose to fame, though, through social media, Twitter, now X, YouTube, and TikTok, where he posts about his success and his lifestyle. He's drawn a lot of attention with the outrageous and offensive way in which he's talked about women.
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Zelenskyy Visits DC, Tate Brothers In Florida, USAID Standoff, AOC and DOJ
A couple of years ago, he got into an online fight with environmental activist Greta Thunberg, you might recall, when he bragged about his 33 Lamborghinis and other big cars and their enormous emissions, as he called them. Now, he's been in Romania for several years living there.
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Zelenskyy Visits DC, Tate Brothers In Florida, USAID Standoff, AOC and DOJ
The case against him involves seven women who say they were misled and transported to Romania, where they were then sexually exploited. And he faces those similar charges in the United Kingdom.
Up First from NPR
Zelenskyy Visits DC, Tate Brothers In Florida, USAID Standoff, AOC and DOJ
The Financial Times reported last week that members of the Trump administration pressed remaining authorities to lift the travel restrictions. President Trump was asked about that at the White House yesterday, and he said he didn't know anything about it.
Up First from NPR
Zelenskyy Visits DC, Tate Brothers In Florida, USAID Standoff, AOC and DOJ
Here in Florida, Governor Ron DeSantis was also asked about it yesterday, whether he had any advance notice that Andrew Tate and his brother were headed here, and he said no. He also had this to say.
Up First from NPR
Zelenskyy Visits DC, Tate Brothers In Florida, USAID Standoff, AOC and DOJ
DeSantis says it's up to the federal government, not the state, to decide whether to allow the Tate brothers to enter the country. And he said Florida's attorney general is looking at what jurisdiction the state may have over any of the charges that are outstanding. Now, both Andrew and Tristan Tate are U.S. British citizens.
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Zelenskyy Visits DC, Tate Brothers In Florida, USAID Standoff, AOC and DOJ
Interestingly, President Trump is expected to be at Mar-a-Lago just up the highway this weekend. And there's no indication yet of whether or not the Tates might be invited for a visit.
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Zelenskyy Visits DC, Tate Brothers In Florida, USAID Standoff, AOC and DOJ
You're welcome.
Up First from NPR
LA Fires Latest, Trump's Sentencing, TikTok At The Supreme Court
What are you expecting to hear from each side? TikTok's legal team will be making two arguments, one on behalf of the company and another on behalf of TikTokers, and their case is boiled down to this. Shutting down a massively popular social media platform violates the free speech of TikTok's U.S. corporation and the millions of Americans who use it every day.
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LA Fires Latest, Trump's Sentencing, TikTok At The Supreme Court
TikTok plans to argue that it has done quite a bit to distance itself from its Chinese parent company, ByteDance. The Department of Justice is expected to say not so fast. Anything short of completely splitting off from ByteDance poses a risk, and that's because ByteDance's home is... is in China and China is a foreign adversary of the United States.
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LA Fires Latest, Trump's Sentencing, TikTok At The Supreme Court
Now, the Justice Department says Americans' personal data on the app is vulnerable and even the possibility, Steve, of China trying to manipulate the views of U.S. citizens is just too risky.
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LA Fires Latest, Trump's Sentencing, TikTok At The Supreme Court
We don't know. It's possible that the court will stay the January 19th start date as justices deliberate. Now, the court is here, Steve, really trying to thread a very difficult needle, right? They likely want to make sure the federal government doesn't silence the voices of millions of Americans, but also they want to safeguard against possible covert influence from China. If
Up First from NPR
LA Fires Latest, Trump's Sentencing, TikTok At The Supreme Court
The Supreme Court upholds the law. Yes, it could start very soon. Apple and Google will then be legally required to remove TikTok from app stores. Web hosting firms like Oracle that support TikTok have to cut ties. It could be the beginning of the end for TikTok. Now, if the Supreme Court strikes down the law, well, then it's just business as usual for the app.
Up First from NPR
LA Fires Latest, Trump's Sentencing, TikTok At The Supreme Court
he has enormous sway here. In recent months, as you mentioned, Trump has flip-flopped on TikTok, but now the former and future president really might be the decider here because if the Supreme Court decides to uphold this law, who then will be charged with interpreting it? That would be President-elect Trump, and he can tell his Justice Department to just not enforce it, or he can try to cut
Up First from NPR
LA Fires Latest, Trump's Sentencing, TikTok At The Supreme Court
some other deal and say, hey, actually, TikTok is in compliance with the law. So a lot of eyes are on exactly what Trump is going to do here.
Up First from NPR
LA Fires Latest, Trump's Sentencing, TikTok At The Supreme Court
Yeah, in a number of ways. Some TikTokers are promoting workarounds already if a ban does take place, you know, getting on like a virtual private network to try to circumvent American cell towers. And others are saying, hey, TikTok might be banned soon. So how about you all jump on YouTube Shorts and Instagram Reels, which, Steve, is another reality of all of this.
Up First from NPR
LA Fires Latest, Trump's Sentencing, TikTok At The Supreme Court
If TikTok is banned, the biggest winners are likely to be Google and Meta. Thanks for that insight. NPR's Bobby Allen, really appreciate it.