Mike Pence concerned TikTok bill may get lost in 'fog of presidential politics,’ pushes Senate vote
Side-by-side photo of former Vice President Mike Pence and TikTok. logo. (TikTok image by Chesnot/Getty Images) (Pence photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
Mike Pence worries that a bipartisan effort to ban TikTok will get lost in the shuffle of presidential politics before this year’s November election.
The former vice president shared his thoughts during an interview with FOX News Digital saying, "I am concerned that this vitally important national security measure could be caught up in the delays in the United States Senate and ultimately be lost in the fog of presidential politics."
His remarks allude to an expected rematch between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump in the presidential election.
RELATED: TikTok ban bill passes in the House: Here’s what happens next
Pence’s organization, Advancing American Freedom, is leading a campaign to push legislation through Congress and to Biden’s desk that would require TikTok to either divest from Chinese-owned company Bytedance or see itself banned in the U.S.
FOX News reported that Pence’s effort includes a multimillion-dollar ad buy in Washington, D.C., and several states aimed at pressuring Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and other key senators to advance the bill.
The $2 million ad began running in D.C. on Sunday, and Pence previewed to Fox News Digital that it would also run at a later date "in several states around the country," including Montana, Ohio, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania.
RELATED: Montana lawmakers pass bill to ban TikTok statewide
Pence told FOX News Digital that TikTok "represents a profound compromise of the privacy of millions of Americans and creates an opportunity for the Chinese Communist Party to collect data on tens of millions of Americans that could be exploited in the future."
He also told the news outlet that TikTok's data collection and connection to China presents "too urgent a threat to put off."
What happens next with the TikTok bill ban?
In March, a bill to ban TikTok in the U.S. was passed by the House. The legislation would require the Chinese firm ByteDance to divest TikTok and other applications it owns within six months of the bill’s enactment or those apps would be prohibited.
Lawmakers claim ByteDance is beholden to the Chinese government, which could demand access to the data of TikTok's consumers in the U.S. any time it wants. The worry stems from a set of Chinese national security laws that compel organizations to assist with intelligence gathering.
RELATED: TikTok ban raises concerns, tech expert warns of conceivable monopoly
The video-sharing app, with about 170 million users in the U.S., has also emerged as a significant issue in the 2024 presidential campaign.
TikTok has long denied that it could be used as a tool of the Chinese government. The company has said it has never shared U.S. user data with Chinese authorities and won’t do so if it is asked.
To date, the U.S. government also has not provided any evidence that shows TikTok shared such information with Chinese authorities.
FOX News contributed to this report. This story was reported from Washington, D.C.