San Antonio’s D.C. reps opposed TikTok bill pushed through Congress

The United States House of Representatives passed cross-party legislation with an overwhelming majority this week that could lead to a TikTok ban if the company doesn’t cut ties with its Chinese investors. The bill passed the House 352-65, but three of those nays came from Texas reps and two more Texans failed to cast a vote.

TikTok has been a hot-button issue on the national stage for some time now. There’s been concerns from national leaders over security concerns of Americans’ data being leaked to the Chinese government. However, actually nailing down the best path forward has been an arduous task for officials. This isn’t the first legislative measure to arrive in the U.S. Senate, either.

Previous attempts to ban TikTok in the U.S. made their way to the Senate last year, which Sen. Rand Paul (R-Kentucky) blocked. This time, the bill doesn’t directly aim to outlaw the social media company but instead asks that TikTok ditch its Chinese investors, ByteDance. If not, the app would be banned from app stores in the United States.

What’s interesting: Texas reps were some of the key players speaking out against the bill and make up nearly 5% of the 65 representatives who voted against the legislation.

“I voted NO on the TikTok bill that passed the house yesterday,” U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro (D-San Antonio) tweeted Wednesday, March 13. “In San Antonion and towns and cities across the country, TikTok has become an important and life-changing platform for folks to express their creativity, grow their small businesses, share authentic news & narratives — and speak truth to power.”

While Castro said he does share concerns with his fellow reps that the social media platform’s current ownership could lead to Chinese propaganda flooding the ever-popular feeds and for you pages, he sees a path forward with more time spent on a bill that addresses “the security concerns with TikTok without endangering access to an important forum for free speech.”

Castro wasn’t the only greater San Antonio area rep in the U.S. House to speak out against the bill. Rep. Greg Casar (D-Austin) also voiced concern about the attempt to strong-arm forced-sale legislation too quickly through Congress.

“I voted no on the TikTok forced sale bill. While I have serious data privacy concerns with TikTok, this bill was rapidly rushed to a vote by the Republicans with almost no public scrutiny — and that’s a recipe for unintended consequences,” Casar said in a statement. “We need well-vetted, robust protections for TikTok users. Today’s bill simply may not work.”

The third Texas representative to vote in opposition was U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Houston). Rep. Kay Granger (R-Fort Worth) and Rep. Roger Williams (R-Willow Park) failed to vote for or against the TikTok legislation on behalf of their Texan constituents.