Ahead of President Trump’s reciprocal tariff announcement across all US trading partners later today, the president will meet with senior administration officials to review a final proposal for the Chinese social media app TikTok. The deliberations come before a Saturday deadline, by which TikTok must complete a sale to a non-Chinese entity or face a US ban.
CBS News cited sources familiar with the upcoming meeting in the Oval Office that said Vice President JD Vance, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, National Security Adviser Mike Waltz, and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard would be present. It’s unclear whether Trump will approve the final proposal today, given that today is “Liberation Day.” The report noted that Blackstone and Oracle are potential investors.
At the start of Trump’s first term, he signed an executive order granting a 75-day extension for TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, to sell the app—used by 170 million Americans—to a US entity or face a nationwide ban. The deadline is Saturday, April 5, bringing the final deal down to the wire.
Over the weekend, Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One, “We have a lot of potential buyers. There’s a lot of interest in TikTok. The decision is going to be my decision,” adding, “I’d like to see TikTok remain alive.” Trump said Monday there was “a lot of enthusiasm for TikTok.”
In a separate report, the Financial Times said Marc Andreessen’s venture capital firm, Andreessen Horowitz, was discussing the purchase of TikTok from ByteDance with Oracle and other investors.
Reuters noted, “In the closely watched sale of TikTok, the White House is playing the role of an investment bank, with Vance running the auction.”
The Trump administration is about to have a hectic week. It will announce reciprocal tariffs later today, and it must also begin finalizing a deal for TikTok as the April 5 deadline looms.
Tyler Durden
Wed, 04/02/2025 – 06:55
