TikTok Tyranny and the RESTRICT bill

in TikTok on by Adam Townsend
TikTok Tyranny adam townsend

The Biden administration has demanded that ByteDance sell TikTok to a U.S. owner or have TikTok face a complete ban on its U.S. operations. Although it’s more comprehensive, it’s colloquially called the “TikTok bill”

“Today, the threat that everyone is talking about is TikTok, and how it could enable surveillance by the Chinese Communist Party, or facilitate the spread of malign influence campaigns in the U.S.” – Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA)

I have written about TikTok several times going back many years

And deep dives into China’s economy, currency trade and industry

I am not naïve to the Chinese Communist Party and ‘what it is’, but I am also not naïve to the American People Operating System and ‘what it is’.

TikTok is certainly a surrogate for the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) but it is also certainly a surrogate for the American regime and its megacorp’ian interests.

I can’t discern which is the CCP using TikTok algorithms to amplify and feed videos in a way that infiltrates America’s social, economic, education and political institutions to sow discord using wedge issues, and which is the Democrat laden regime propagating the same social fabric disruption. Furthermore, they both behaviorally shove a viewer to vote for Democrats.

TikTok Democrats

Headlines:

  • 2020 election cycle, USA Today: “Young and progressive voters aren’t just ‘settling for Biden’ anymore; they’re going all in… many of the members of TikTok for Biden are still under the voting age…group’s message is to encourage young people to be engaged…encouraging those who can vote to cast their ballot. “
  • 2022 Election cycle, The Verge: “The TikTok influencers are coming for the midterms With less than 100 days until the midterm elections, the Democrats are equipping influencers and TikTok creators with digital tools to reach voters across the internet with party-sponsored content.” 
  • 2024 Election cycle, Politico: “TikTok is a necessary evil for Democratic campaigns …one of the most popular social media apps for young people. Those voters, generally under 30, are sometimes credited with turning out in large numbers to bolster Democrats”

Biden TikTok

The Biden administration has used TikTok to diffuse regime propaganda

Headlines:

  • Fortune: “Biden is using TikTok to fight back against Russia’s reported use of influencers to spread propaganda”
  • NPR: “The White House is turning to TikTok stars to take its message to a younger audience. More than 20 influencers — content creators with devoted followers on platforms like TikTok, Instagram and YouTube — received special invitations. It’s part of a White House strategy to reach younger people where they are…”
  • Fox Business: “White House drafts TikTok stars to blame Putin for rising gas prices”
  • Forbes: “President Biden Brings In TikTok Stars To Help Sway Public Opinion Over Russia’s Invasion Of Ukraine.”

TikTok Pharma

Headline:

  • Pharmalive: TIKTOK: HEALTHCARE BRANDS AND THE NEXT SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORM “Whether it’s dispelling vaccine myths, giving tips on dealing with just-tightened braces, or giving an inside look at what it’s like to be an HCP, we’re seeing nurses, NPs, and MDs all using the platform to share important information with the 16-24 audience. While Instagram and Snapchat still specialize in the under 35 audience, TikTok differentiates itself in several ways: It trends younger, with its core audience firmly in the Gen Z demographic”

Pharma headlines

  • Fiercepharma: “Pfizer, Moderna, J&J and AZ shoutouts on social media boost vaccine credibility”
  • Daily Mail: “Patient influencers’ are being paid by big pharma to mislead TikTok and Instagram followers about drugs for HIV, Parkinson’s and migraines, experts warn”

Here is an example of something, maybe it’s just a pharma enthusiast, or perhaps it’s a paid TikTok influencer, there is no disclosure rules. Is this a pharma commercial, a Democrat commercial, or a CCP commercial, they all want the same thing.

I concede that TikTok is surely feeding its user data to nefarious China servers through some tricky web stuff, but that exact same data is being given to the US intel agencies to be sorted through their own nefarious servers.

Furthermore, the US government relies on an extensive list of government agencies and, NGO’s, vendors, universities that all act in service to the government, skirting disclosure rules and constitutional protections. The CCP does not have the advantage. Nor does the CCP promote the end products of the social corruption it diffuses, that gain goes to Disney, Pharma and ilk megacorps.

Headlines:

  • Attractions Magazine: “Disney is hiring influencers to join marketing and TikTok team”
  • Pharma Voice: “TikTok tutorial: How pharma can embrace the video platform’s educational potential”

There is nothing uniquely insidious that distinguishes TikTok as a greater evil and on closer inspection they are, perhaps, the lesser.

The CCP and the newly updated American People Operating System handbook are both in agreement that American nationalism is an display of White supremacism, particularly on the occasion it’s done by a “White man”, which I suspect I am.

Headline:

NBC News: “Some Trump supporters are co-opting the American flag. Nazis once did that, too.”

So, if the CCP is my enemy, it is the one furthest away from my house.

If banning TikTok is a response to Chinese aggression, we are hurting China like lemmings hurt cliffs.

Americans are the victims of CCP through its use of Fentanyl pushed into America through our open’y Southern border welcoming committee, our record, all-time high trade deficit with China that’s inches away from being $1 trillion dollars (which is an act of war in itself) and so on.

These are things that immediately impact my life, I can quantify and qualify its damage. TikTok, in that sense, is not even a bruise on my body.

Forensics on the TikTok ban

In 2019+ Trump was aggressively pushing to get TikTok banned or divested. Back then, the #resistance, #resisted and stopped any Trump’s action from advancing.

The bills proposed by Trump’s administration had none of the malevolence of the current bills nor the devices to be tortuous to Americans. 

August, 2020 Trump published an executive order targeting TikTok and Weibo Chat. The orders narrowly asserted that the two apps would be blocked from processing transactions for US citizens and from being downloaded in US app stores after 45 days. On August 14, 2020  Trump said in a separate executive order that TikTok would face a complete ban if it did not sell to a US company by 14 November.

A Judge immediately suspended the order temporarily for review, which then the entire order had to be rescinded.

These headlines whipped popular support against Trump’s TikTok lite plan:

“…can only be explained by nationalism, xenophobia, and the 2020 general election in November. With a ban on TikTok, Americans are in danger of losing not only entertainment but also their right to free speech.” 

“…Trump’s supporters are motivated by racism, sexism, and anti-Chinese sentiment…With a casual nod and wink, Trump presents China as a threat to “individual freedom”—the kind of freedom that allows white domestic terrorists to bandy about guns at state capitals… some of Trump’s supporters are willing to see their fellow Americans die from the coronavirus rather than concede to “big government.”

“…Trump has taken abuse of authority to yet another level, invoking emergency and national security powers far beyond what Congress intended and the Constitution allows, to score political points, serve his xenophobic and racist agenda, and spread fear and uncertainty. He appears to be doing the same thing by selectively banning TikTok and WeChat, which are owned by companies based in China.”

Biden vs TikTok

December, 2022: the Averting the National Threat of Internet Surveillance, Oppressive Censorship and Influence, and Algorithmic Learning by the Chinese Communist Party Act, a bill with the magical initials ANTI-SOCIAL CCP Act

The bill: “…protect(s) Americans from the threat posed by certain foreign adversaries using current or potential future social media companies that those foreign adversaries control to surveil Americans, learn sensitive data about Americans, or spread influence campaigns, propaganda, and censorship.

The bill also has a list checklist that would indicate a foreign social media platform is unduly subject to a foreign adversarial government’s control.

A country and/or entity of concern directly or indirectly owns, “controls with the ability to decide important matters,” or holds 10 percent or more of the company’s voting shares or stocks.

The company uses software or algorithms that are controlled, or whose export is controlled, by a country or entity of concern.

A country or entity of concern can substantially, directly or indirectly influence the company to (a) share data on U.S. citizens or (b) modify its content moderation practices

February, 2023: the Deterring America’s Technological Adversaries (DATA) Act, which would provide the president with more authorities to block transactions associated with the import or export of Americans’ “sensitive data” where there are national security risks 

March, 2023: the Restricting the Emergence of Security Threats that Risk Information and Communications Technology (RESTRICT) Act authorizing the secretary of commerce to review and prohibit certain transactions between persons in the U.S. and foreign adversaries, focused on information and communications technologies that pose risks to U.S. national security.

March 7, 2023 the White House officially voices it’s support for the RESTRICT ACT 

The remainder of this post will look at the RESTRICT act, thought the other relevant acts have the opportunity for “American evil”, the RESTRICT act is explicit in its bad intentions. This section will also borrowed from other sources which I have linked.

The RESTRICT Act

…is not limited to just TikTok. It gives the government authority over all forms of communication domestic or abroad and grants powers to “enforce any mitigation measure to address any risk” to national security now and in any “potential future transaction”

Following is the bill in italics, and my notes in blue, regular font. In a few instances I have added my own emphasis to the bill in bold

A BILL

To authorize the Secretary of Commerce to review and prohibit certain transactions between persons in the United States and foreign adversaries, and for other purposes.”

COVERED TRANSACTION:

(D) TIMING.—The term “covered transaction” includes a current, past, or potential future transaction

What is a “transaction”, whatever they want it to be. There is nothing that isn’t

(4) COVERED TRANSACTION

(A) IN GENERAL.—The term “covered transaction” means a transaction in which an entity described in subparagraph (B) has any interest (including through an interest in a contract for the provision of the technology or service), or any class of such transactions.

(B) COVERED ENTITIES.—The entities described in this subparagraph are:

(i) a foreign adversary;

(ii) an entity subject to the jurisdiction of, or organized under the laws of, a foreign adversary; and

(iii) an entity owned, directed, or controlled by a person described in subparagraph (A) or (B).

(C) NON-EVASION.—The term “covered transaction” includes any other transaction, the structure of which is designed or intended to evade or circumvent the application of this Act, subject to regulations prescribed by the Secretary.

(D) TIMING.—The term “covered transaction” includes a current, past, or potential future transaction.

The parts that include “more than 1,000,000 persons” catches all social media networks that have more than 1,000,000 accounts (Hence TikTok, et al and the use of “1,000,000 unites” catches items like Ring and in-home products like Alexa, Google Home, et al

So what happens if you are designated a national security threat? What can they access of yours to confirm it? Everything.

SEC. 5. CONSIDERATIONS.

(abbreviated)

(2) software, hardware, or any other product or service integral to telecommunications products and services, including

(A) wireless local area networks;

(B) mobile networks;

(C) satellite payloads;

(D) satellite operations and control;

(E) cable access points;

(F) wireline access points;

(G) core networking systems;

(H) long-, short-, and back-haul networks; or

(I) edge computer platforms;

(3) any software, hardware, or any other product or service integral to data hosting or computing service that uses, processes, or retains, or is expected to use, process, or retain, sensitive personal data with respect to greater than 1,000,000 persons in the United States (social media) at any point during the year period preceding the date on which the covered transaction is referred to the Secretary for review or the Secretary initiates review of the covered transaction, including—

(A) internet hosting services;

(B) cloud-based or distributed computing and data storage;

(C) machine learning, predictive analytics, and data science products and services, including those involving the provision of services to assist a party utilize, manage, or maintain open-source software;

(D) managed services; and

(E) content delivery services;

(4) internet- or network-enabled sensors, webcams, end-point surveillance or monitoring devices, modems and home networking devices if greater than 1,000,000 units have been sold to persons in the United States (appliances, cameras, Alexa, etc) at any point during the year period preceding the date on which the covered transaction is referred to the Secretary for review or the Secretary initiates review of the covered transaction;

(5) unmanned vehicles, including drones and other aerials systems, autonomous or semi-autonomous vehicles, or any other product or service integral to the provision, maintenance, or management of such products or services;

(6) software designed or used primarily for connecting with and communicating via the internet that is in use by greater than 1,000,000 persons in the United States (social media and etc catch-all for medium such as discord servers, etc) at any point during the year period preceding the date on which the covered transaction is referred to the Secretary for review or the Secretary initiates review of the covered transaction, including—

(A) desktop applications;

(B) mobile applications;

(C) gaming applications;

(D) payment applications; or

(E) web-based applications; or

(7) information and communications technology products and services integral to—

(A) artificial intelligence and machine learning;

(B) quantum key distribution;

(C) quantum communications;

(D) quantum computing;

(E) post-quantum cryptography;

(F) autonomous systems;

(G) advanced robotics;

(H) biotechnology;

(I) synthetic biology;

(J) computational biology; and

(K) e-commerce technology and services, including any electronic techniques for accomplishing business transactions, online retail, internet-enabled logistics, internet-enabled payment technology, and online marketplaces.

The Director of National Intelligence and Secretary of Commerce have the unique authority to universally designate new “Foreign Adversaries” without notifying congress and a 15 day window to notify the president. It also requires a joint resolution of Congress to overturn.

SEC. 6. DESIGNATION OF FOREIGN ADVERSARIES.

(a) In General.—

(1) DESIGNATION.—The Secretary may, in consultation with the Director of National Intelligence, designate any foreign government or regime as a foreign adversary if the Secretary finds that the foreign government or regime is engaged in a long-term pattern or serious instances of conduct significantly adverse to the national security of the United States or security and safety of United States persons.

SEC. 7. RESOLUTION OF DISAPPROVAL OF DESIGNATION OR REMOVAL OF DESIGNATION OF A FOREIGN ADVERSARY.

(a) Definition.—In this section—

(1) the term “covered joint resolution” means a joint resolution of disapproval of designation or a joint resolution of disapproval of removal of designation;

(2) the term “joint resolution of disapproval of designation” means a joint resolution the matter after the resolving clause of which is as follows: “That Congress disapproves the designation by the Secretary of Commerce of ___ as a foreign adversary for purposes of the Securing the Information and Communications Technology and Services Supply Chain Act of 2023, and such designation shall have no force or effect until the Secretary of Commerce provides specific evidence to the relevant committees of Congress regarding the removal of designation under section 6(a) of that Act.” (The blank space being appropriately filled in with the name of the foreign person of which the Secretary has designated as a foreign adversary of for purposes of this Act); and

“Foreign Individuals” can now also be US citizens that are deemed a national security threat. Once designated, the bill grants authority to enforce any action deemed necessary to mitigate the threat, with no due process and few limits on punishments.

(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may issue guidance, including advisory opinions, and establish procedures to carry out this Act.

(2) LISTS OF FOREIGN PERSONS.—The Secretary may create lists of foreign persons that may be subject to prohibitions or restrictions and related mechanisms to revise and update such lists periodically.

(3) ADDITIONAL AUTHORITY.—The Secretary may undertake any other action as necessary to carry out the responsibilities under this Act that is not otherwise prohibited by law.

(b) Permitted Activities.—Officers and employees of agencies authorized to conduct investigations under subsection (a) may—

(1) inspect, search, detain, seize, or impose temporary denial orders with respect to items, in any form, or conveyances on which it is believed that there are items that have been, are being, or are about to be imported into the United States in violation of this Act or any other applicable Federal law;

(2) require, inspect, and obtain books, records, and any other information from any person subject to the provisions of this Act or other applicable Federal law;

(3) administer oaths or affirmations and, by subpoena, require any person to appear and testify or to appear and produce books, records, and other writings, or both; and

SEC. 11. PENALTIES.

(a) Unlawful Acts.—

(1) IN GENERAL.—It shall be unlawful for a person to violate, attempt to violate, conspire to violate, or cause a violation of any regulation, order, direction, mitigation measure, prohibition, or other authorization or directive issued under this Act, including any of the unlawful acts described in paragraph (2).

(2) SPECIFIC UNLAWFUL ACTS.—The unlawful acts described in this paragraph are the following:

(A) No person may engage in any conduct prohibited by or contrary to, or refrain from engaging in any conduct required by any regulation, order, direction, mitigation measure, prohibition, or other authorization or directive issued under this Act.

(B) No person may cause or aid, abet, counsel, command, induce, procure, permit, or approve the doing of any act prohibited by, or the omission of any act required by any regulation, order, direction, mitigation measure, prohibition, or other authorization or directive issued under, this Act.

(C) No person may solicit or attempt a violation of any regulation, order, direction, mitigation measure, prohibition, or authorization or directive issued under this Act.

(D) No person may conspire or act in concert with 1 or more other person in any manner or for any purpose to bring about or to do any act that constitutes a violation of any regulation, order, direction, mitigation measure, prohibition, or other authorization or directive issued under this Act.

(E) No person may, whether directly or indirectly through any other person, make any false or misleading representation, statement, or certification, or falsify or conceal any material fact, to the Department of Commerce or any official of any other executive department or agency—

The Federal government may detain you without due process to mitigate the “immediate threat,” and impose a $1,000,000 fine, 20 years in prison and forfeiture of everything you own.

  • b) Civil Penalties.—The Secretary may impose the following civil penalties on a person for each violation by that person of this Act or any regulation, order, direction, mitigation measure, prohibition, or other authorization issued under this Act:

(2) CIVIL FORFEITURE.—

(A) FORFEITURE.—

(i) IN GENERAL.—Any property, real or personal, tangible or intangible, used or intended to be used, in any manner, to commit or facilitate a violation or attempted violation described in paragraph (1) shall be subject to forfeiture to the United States.

(ii) PROCEEDS.—Any property, real or personal, tangible or intangible, constituting or traceable to the gross proceeds taken, obtained, or retained, in connection with or as a result of a violation or attempted violation described in paragraph (1) shall be subject to forfeiture to the United States.

(1) A fine of not more than $250,000 or an amount that is twice the value of the transaction that is the basis of the violation with respect to which the penalty is imposed, whichever is greater.

(2) Revocation of any mitigation measure or authorization issued under this Act to the person.

(c) Criminal Penalties.—

(1) IN GENERAL.—A person who willfully commits, willfully attempts to commit, or willfully conspires to commit, or aids or abets in the commission of an unlawful act described in subsection (a) shall, upon conviction, be fined not more than $1,000,000, or if a natural person, may be imprisoned for not more than 20 years, or both.

This act also grants unlimited hiring power to positions of enforcement, unlimited funds with little or no review and immunity to FOIA.

(b) Appointment Of Candidates.—To expedite the ability of the Secretary to implement this Act, the Secretary may appoint, without regard to the provisions of sections 3309 through 3318 of title 5, United States Code, candidates directly to positions in the competitive service (as defined in section 212 of that title).

And if you have questions or want to FOIA or inquire as to a status or “how did this happen”, good luck with that

(f) No Right Of Access.

(1) IN GENERAL.—No provision of this Act shall be construed to create a right to obtain access to information in the possession of the Federal Government that was considered in making a determination under this Act that a transaction is a covered transaction or interest or to prohibit, mitigate, or take action against a covered transaction or interest, including any classified national security information or sensitive but unclassified information.

(2) INAPPLICABILITY OF FOIA – Any information submitted to the Federal Government by a party to a covered transaction in accordance with this Act, as well as any information the Federal Government may create relating to review of the covered transaction, is exempt from disclosure under section 552 of title 5, United States Code (commonly referred to as the “Freedom of Information Act”).

The bill states that it is only applicable to foreign entities, however it then allows anyone that poses a threat to “critical infrastructure” pursuant to a section of the patriot act listed here to also have action taken against them in accordance with this bill.

(5) CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE.—The term “critical infrastructure” has the meaning given the term in section 1016(e) of the USA PATRIOT Act (42 U.S.C. 5195c(e)).

(6) ENTITY.—The term “entity” means any of the following, whether established in the United States or outside of the United States:

(A) A firm.

(B) A government, government agency, government department, or government commission.

(C) A labor union.

(D) A fraternal or social organization.

(E) A partnership.

(F) A trust.

(G) A joint venture.

(H) A corporation.

(I) A group, subgroup, or other association or organization whether or not organized for profit.

(7) EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT AND AGENCY.—The term “executive department and agency” has the meaning given the term “Executive agency” in section 105 of title 5, United States Code.

(8) FOREIGN ADVERSARY.—The term “foreign adversary”—

(A) means any foreign government or regime, determined by the Secretary, pursuant to sections 3 and 5, to have engaged in a long-term pattern or serious instances of conduct significantly adverse to the national security of the United States or the security and safety of United States persons; and

(B) includes, unless removed by the Secretary pursuant to section 6—

(i) the People’s Republic of China, including the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and Macao Special Administrative Region;

(ii) the Republic of Cuba;

(iii) the Islamic Republic of Iran;

(iv) the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea;

(v) the Russian Federation; and

(vi) the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela under the regime of Nicolás Maduro Moros.

(9) HOLDING.—The term “holding”—

(A) means—

(i) an equity interest;

(ii) a stock;

(iii) a security;

(iv) a share;

(v) a partnership interest;

(vi) an interest in a limited liability company;

(vii) a membership interest; or

(viii) any participation, right, or other equivalent, however designated and of any character; and

The Secretary of Commerce has the ability to identify, deter, disrupt, prevent, prohibit, investigate, or otherwise mitigate these social media technologies if they impose an undue risk of interfering with the result or reported result of a federal election.

SEC. 3. ADDRESSING INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY PRODUCTS AND SERVICES THAT POSE UNDUE OR UNACCEPTABLE RISK.

(a) In General.—The Secretary, in consultation with the relevant executive department and agency heads, is authorized to and shall take action to identify, deter, disrupt, prevent, prohibit, investigate, or otherwise mitigate, including by negotiating, entering into, or imposing, and enforcing any mitigation measure to address any risk arising from any covered transaction by any person, or with respect to any property, subject to the jurisdiction of the United States that the Secretary determines—

(1) poses an undue or unacceptable risk of—

(A) sabotage or subversion of the design, integrity, manufacturing, production, distribution, installation, operation, or maintenance of information and communications technology products and services in the United States;

(B) catastrophic effects on the security or resilience of the critical infrastructure or digital economy of the United States;

(C) interfering in, or altering the result or reported result of a Federal election, as determined in coordination with the Attorney General, the Director of National Intelligence, the Secretary of Treasury, and the Federal Election Commission; or

(D) coercive or criminal activities by a foreign adversary that are designed to undermine democratic processes and institutions or steer policy and regulatory decisions in favor of the strategic objectives of a foreign adversary to the detriment of the national security of the United States, as determined in coordination with the Attorney General, the Director of National Intelligence, the Secretary of Treasury, and the Federal Election Commission; or

(2) otherwise poses an undue or unacceptable risk to the national security of the United States or the safety of United States persons.

The End?