Donald Trump tried and
failed to ban TikTok one last time during his presidency. His administration
attempted to legalize the ban but the federal judge in Pennsylvania blocked the
administration from moving forward with the restrictions.

With the ban, the app
would’ve become unusable from November 12^th due to the restriction
in content delivery, web hosting, etc.

According to the latest
news, TikTok will now be suing the Trump administration and Commerce Department
for unnecessary restrictions. But if you thought that the judge overruled the
ban because of TikTok’s decision to sue the administration, you’re wrong.

Actually, three TikTok
influencers stepped up and sued the administration. They accused the
administration for preventing them from earning a living. They argued that most
TikTok videos carry informational material that is automatically protected by
the law. The judge seemed to agree with this defense.

“The short videos created and exchanged on
TikTok are expressive and informative, and are analogous to the ‘films,’
‘artworks,’ ‘photographs,’ and ‘news wire feeds’ expressly protected under the
International Emergency Economic Powers Act.” – Wrote the
judge.

Back in September,
similar restrictions were blocked by the court. The Commerce Department was
adamant on their opinion, but due to another lawsuit, this case was halted.

Ambika Kumar Doran, who
is the lead attorney for these influencers, said that they were pleased that
the judge understood the predicament and put aside the pressure from the
President himself to view this case with complete honesty and under the
constitution of Democracy which promotes free speech.

A TikTok spokesperson said:
“We are deeply moved by the outpouring
of support from our community, who have worked to protect their rights to
expression, to their careers, and to support small businesses, particularly
during the pandemic. We support our creative community in continuing to share
their voices, both through the platform and the legal options available to
them, and we are committed to continuing to provide a home for them to do so.”

Anyway, the outcome of
the current hearing seems to have cleared TikTok from the ban – at least for
now. However, that doesn’t mean that Trump’s administrations has accepted
defeat; you may expect another lawsuit in the near future, all thanks to the
vague national security claims. The equation will obviously change, depending
on the course of election.