‘Callers like this who communicate threats against elected officials could be committing a federal crime,’ says Sen. Thom Tillis.
Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) warned of the danger of TikTok’s current ownership structure after a supporter of the Chinese-owned video-sharing app left a voicemail threatening to “shoot” him.
“Okay, listen. If you ban TikTok, I will find you and shoot you,” the caller says while chuckling. “That’s people’s jobs, and that’s my only entertainment. And people make money off there, too, you know. I’m trying to get rich like that.
“Anyways, I’ll find you and shoot you and cut you into pieces. Bye,” the caller concludes.
At issue is Congress’s push to mandate TikTok’s Chinese parent company, ByteDance, to fully divest from the social media platform. This move aims to remove TikTok from the influence of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
“This is a voicemail my office received last night,” Mr. Tillis wrote in his X post. “TikTok’s misinformation campaign is pushing people to call their members of Congress, and callers like this who communicate threats against elected officials could be committing a federal crime,” he said.
He pointed out that “The Communist-Chinese aligned company is proving just how dangerous their current ownership is. Great work, TikTok.”
It also alleged that “millions of Americans” oppose the TikTok bill and that the legislation “would trample Americans’ constitutional rights of free expression.”
TikTok
Critics have since been questioning TikTok’s statement.
“Now the company claims to condemn these threats but in [the] same post commit to continue fomenting misinformation causing kids to make these threats,” Mr. Leamer continued.
“These are kids who need help. They should be contacting 988, the suicide and crisis hotline, NOT spreading hate and misinformation on behalf of the CCP,” he added.
“It happened [with] House offices last week too. TikTok didn’t say a word. They hoped it would blow over. It hasn’t,” Mr. Sobolik said.
“And in this non-apology to [Sen. Thom Tillis], TikTok repeats the same lies about the bill that are motivating these death threats,” he added.
“Thousands of calls flooded congressional offices—including mine in Washington, D.C. The calls included children and young teens threatening suicide and violence if TikTok shuts down in the United States,” Mr. Latta wrote.
“Here’s the reality: The Chinese Communist Party is watching and cheering. They want to sow division in the United States. They want to manipulate children and steal our data. And they want to pressure Congress to keep the app active in the United States without decoupling it from Communist China,” he added.
Mr. Latta emphasized that the bill “does not ban TikTok.” Instead, he said TikTok would be available in the United States once it is determined that the app “is no longer controlled by a foreign adversary.”
“I urge the U.S. Senate to take up this bill and send it to the president’s desk,” Mr. Latta said.
“It’s time to stand up to the Chinese Communist Party and relinquish their control over TikTok. Let’s get it done.”
Original News Source Link – Epoch Times
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