The White House Is On TikTok: Is TikTok Safe? What's Next?
Hard to say. But one thing is certain: the White House will soon be joined by other US government agencies... Perhaps the State Department?
💬 Quick CONVERSATION STARTERS:
“I am your voice!”
This is the White House first video on TikTok after officially launching on the platform — deemed a national security risk by the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act of 2024 (PAFACA), signed into law by President Joe Biden on April 24, 2024.
“Every day, I wake up determined to deliver a better life for the people all across this nation. I am your voice,” Trump said in the White House TikTok first video in a voice-over amid cheers.
The TikTok ban and the law…
The PAFACA bill would have banned the app in the US TikTok’s US operations were sold to one or more US entities.
On his first day in office on January 20, 2025, President Donald Trump signed an executive order extending the ban deadline. In his executive order, Trump wrote:
I have the unique constitutional responsibility for the national security of the United States, the conduct of foreign policy, and other vital executive functions. To fulfill those responsibilities, I intend to consult with my advisors, including the heads of relevant departments and agencies on the national security concerns posed by TikTok, and to pursue a resolution that protects national security while saving a platform used by 170 million Americans. My Administration must also review sensitive intelligence related to those concerns and evaluate the sufficiency of mitigation measures TikTok has taken to date.
“Why would I want to get rid of TikTok?” Trump said on Truth Social in January, sharing a post about the billions of views his campaign account continued to rack up.
Trump extended the deadline twice since its first executive order — in April 2025 and in June 2025. The extension will be expiring in less than a month, on September 17, 2025.
In a statement, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said:
The Trump administration is committed to communicating the historic successes President Trump has delivered to the American people with as many audiences and platforms as possible.
President Trump's message dominated TikTok during his presidential campaign, and we're excited to build upon those successes and communicate in a way no other administration has before.
Despite this White House statment, last month, US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told CNBC that TikTok will go dark again unless China agrees to a deal that will give Americans control over the app.
“We've made the decision. You can't have Chinese control and have something on 100 million American phones,” Lutnick said, adding that China's decision would be coming “very soon.”
Perhaps, the administration’s move creates more questions than answers about the future of TikTok in the US:
Is this a step forward in the negotiations with ByteDance, the Chinese company that owns TikTok, and China on the sale — or rather divestment —of TikTok’s US operations?
Is this a move to create leverage in the current negotiations with China on trade and tariffs?
Is the sale of TikTok in the US near?
Who’s buying it?
Will a possible new TikTok US version be an exact copy of the current TikTok? Will US users be able to interact with TikTok globally?
Is it legal for a US government entity, executive or federal agency, or government employees to use TikTok from their official phones and devices?
Is TikTok safe or is it still a national security threat?
How are other US-based platforms — like Meta’s Instagram or Google’s Youtube — going to react?
Is TikTok going to be saved?
Charles Gasparino of Fox News reported this morning that, according to White House sources, the new TikTok account “should NOT be construed as deal progress between Trump and Xi on the future of the controversial Chinese owned app that many believe is a spy tool.”
“This is significant news,” commented newsfluencer Aaron Parnas. “TikTok is still technically banned on the federal level and federal officials are not allowed to have TikTok on their government phones.”
Aaron says the launch of the White House TikTok account “will set the stage for members of Congress, potentially other executive agencies — like the State Department or the Department of Commerce — to make their own official TikTok account.”
Aaaron added that the move “makes clear that TikTok is probably here to stay, really no matter what happens moving forward.”
“So what changed?” asked William Rookwood in his Substack The Rookwood Signal. “Did China cease to be a threat overnight? Did the app suddenly shed its supposed poisons? Of course not. What changed is not the platform—it is who holds the megaphone.”
Jerrod Zisser of The TAKE with Jerrod Zisser said: “Some say it’s about reach and better controlled of the younger generation. TikTok is where millions of young voters get their news. And an official account lets the administration speak directly to them while controlling the narrative. Critics say this is a contradiction: downplaying security risks, while embracing the platform.”
Jerrod added that “the move shows how powerful TikTok has become in American politics.”
In a Spring post on the Cato Institute, Pierre Lemieux said that Trump “returning to office, rides in like a knight in shining armor and saves the app, perhaps illegally, because it is politically beneficial for him.”
Who’s next on TikTok?
Hard to say. But one thing is certain: the White House will soon be joined by other US government agencies — perhaps the US Department of State, after it recently launched here on Substack with their official U.S. Department of State newsletter.
What other world leaders are on TikTok?
Many Presidents and Prime Ministers are already on TikTok, including Donald Trump — who has used it as a campaign tool.
For instance, 3 of the G7 leaders are on the platform:
France’s Emmanuel Macron
Italy’s Giorgia Meloni
Germany’s Friedrich Merz
Of the G20 leaders, in addition to Macron, Meloni, and Merz, the following are on TikTok:
Mexico’s Claudia Sheinbaum
Brazil’s Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva
Argentina’s Javier Milei
Some other world leaders (not an exhaustive list):
Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu
Malaysia’s Anwar Ibrahim
El Salvador’s Nayib Bukele
Ecuador’s Daniel Noboa
Colombia’s Gustavo Petro
Philippines’ Bongbong Marcos
Poland’s Donald Tusk
Greece’s Kyriakos Mitsotakis
Hungary’s Viktor Orbán
Finland’s Alexander Stubb
Ireland’s Michael Higgins
Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdoğan
Chile’s Gabriel Boric
Colombia’s Gustavo Petro
So far, the reaction to the White House on TikTok is as predictable as can be... no matter what BS numbers Trumpedo fabricates.
The audience is tearing it apart.
But The Great White Dope, neurons misfiring as usual, thinks it's all wonderful... and once finalized, will turn it over to some oligarch like Larry Ellison at Oracle and take a backdoor cut of whatever ad revenue there might be.
Zero financial risk to himself and screw Truth Social in the process.
As he ruins everything he touches, so will it be with TikTok... or TrumpTok or whatever wacky rebranding The Commander-In-Thief comes up with to stroke his egomania.
And wait till he purges the millions of TT accounts that keep bashing him. So here comes Truth Social V.2.
Sad, as TT was fun and META's Threads or X are unlikely to pick up the slack.
Oh well. Social media becomes Uncivil Media. --------------------
Resist. Revolt. Remove.
Trump is only on there to benefit himself does not care about America and their National Security and with the list of people on there I would not trust them as far as I could kick them and that’s not far. God save America and the rest of the world