‘Thunder Run': Behind Lawmakers' Secretive Push to Pass the TikTok Bill

Just over a year ago, lawmakers showed bipartisan concern about TikTok’s ties to China and the possibility of severing those ties or banning the app. However, little progress was made on this front. Behind the scenes, a small group of lawmakers secretly worked on a bill that was passed in the Senate on Tuesday. The bill requires TikTok to be sold by its Chinese owner or face a ban. This development has significant implications for an app with 170 million users in the United States. The group behind the bill collaborated with the Justice Department and White House to ensure its success. The bill underwent a remarkably fast process of introduction, review, and passage.