On Wednesday, about two dozen elected members of the US House of Representatives, both Republicans and Democrats, announced their intention to pass legislation that would ban TikTok from operating in the United States unless the social network severed ties with its parent company. ByteDance, and in general with China, reports AFP.

“We have come together, ten Democrats and ten Republicans, to introduce legislation that would ban TikTok from operating in the United States unless it severed ties with ByteDance or any other organization controlled by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP),” said Mike Gallagher. Republican Chairman of the CPC Committee of the House of Representatives at a press conference.

His fellow Democrat Raja Krishnamurthy assured the media that “this is not a ban. The ball is in the court of ByteDance or any other social media program owned by a “foreign country”.

He stated that “ByteDance has repeatedly used the TikTok platform to undermine not only US national security, but also the interests of its users,” adding that evidence of ties between the social network’s parent company and the Chinese military is real.

“We’re begging ByteDance to sell TikTok so US users can continue to enjoy” the app, but elected officials also want them to “tell ByteDance to sell the platform,” Krishnamurthy added.

Asked by AFP, a spokesperson for the social network said the law was “a simple ban on TikTok, no matter how hard its creators try to hide it.”

“It would violate the First Amendment (which protects free speech) of 170 million Americans and deprive five million small businesses of the platform they rely on to grow and create jobs,” he added.

Several states and the federal government have banned the app’s use on official government devices, citing national security risks.

In Northwest Montana, a judge recently blocked a state government initiative to ban the program altogether.

While Washington continues to monitor the app, no federal action to ban or restrict the social network’s use appears to be on the cards for now.

TikTok has been under the crosshairs of US authorities for months, with many officials claiming the platform allows Beijing to spy on and manipulate its 150 million US users. The company has always denied these allegations.