Ricketts Comments on Supreme Court Upholding TikTok Law: “America’s National Security Comes First”

January 17, 2025

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Pete Ricketts (R-NE) issued the following statement in response to the Supreme Court’s unanimous ruling in TikTok Inc v. Garland. In the ruling, the Supreme Court upheld a law passed overwhelmingly by Congress requiring Bytedance, a Chinese company and TikTok’s parent company, to sell TikTok.

“Under Chinese law, all Chinese companies must do the bidding of the Chinese Communist Party. Last year, Congress acted, requiring TikTok to be sold within 270 days. The fact that the CCP has refused to sell tells you everything. They want to continue pushing their propaganda and spying on Americans. Today’s unanimous Supreme Court decision sends a clear message that the bipartisan will of Congress must not be subverted. America’s national security comes first.”

Ricketts has long highlighted the threats posed by TikTok to Americans’ security and privacy. In 2020, Ricketts became the first Governor to ban TikTok on state devices. Last year, he voted for the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act. On Wednesday, he blocked an attempt from Senate Democrats on the Senate floor to extend the timeline for a sale.