Former Vice President Mike Pence has initiated a robust $2 million advertising campaign aimed at rallying Senate support for the House bill mandating Chinese-based ByteDance to offload TikTok operations in the United States or confront a ban.
Spearheaded by the conservative advocacy group Advancing American Freedom (AAF), led by Pence, the campaign is slated to kick off next week across pivotal states for the upcoming November elections, including Montana, Nevada, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Washington, D.C. These regions coincide with TikTok’s significant advertising efforts in anticipation of the Senate’s impending decision, amounting to a hefty $2.1 million investment.
A key component of AAF’s campaign features footage of Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer previously advocating for the closure of the Chinese-owned TikTok in the U.S., alongside constituents urging him and other senators to endorse the divestment of the popular short-form video platform.
Mike Pence (Credits: National Review)
Expressing a sense of urgency, Pence emphasized the necessity for the Senate to approve the bill before Memorial Day, cautioning against political maneuvering that could delay its passage throughout the 2024 election cycle.
Conversely, TikTok has launched its own extensive advertising blitz, exceeding $2 million, targeting crucial election states last week in a bid to sway senators to thwart the bill, which sailed through the House with little resistance. Notable among the states targeted by TikTok’s campaign are New York and Massachusetts, recognized as pivotal markets for youth and journalism, respectively, and Minnesota, the home turf of Democratic Senator Amy Klobuchar, a vocal critic of the platform.
In addition to the advertising initiative, TikTok has mobilized its user base to inundate congressional offices with calls urging senators to reject the bill, although some officials have reported receiving threatening communications from certain users.
The bill garnered a decisive 352-65 vote in the House last month. Rather than imposing an outright ban, the legislation mandates ByteDance, TikTok’s Chinese parent company, to divest its U.S. operations within 180 days of the bill’s enactment, failing which the app could face expulsion from American app stores.
Despite swift approval in the House and President Biden signaling readiness to endorse the bill’s passage, its fate in the Senate remains uncertain.
