Tron Plans Crypto Treasury, Public Filing
Bloomberg Crypto Show
Justin Sun, the China-born crypto entrepreneur with ties to the Trump family who saw a federal investigation of his business interests paused earlier this year, is set to take his Tron blockchain platform public in the US through a reverse merger. Bloomberg's Michael Regan has more on the story. (Source: Bloomberg)
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Politico
11 minutes ago
- Politico
Trump extends TikTok deadline again
President Donald Trump will extend the deadline for TikTok to divest its U.S. assets by another 90 days, the White House said Tuesday, marking the third time enforcement of the 2024 law has been punted. The popular short-form video app has been illegal for companies to support or host online since Jan. 19, but Trump has been granting it unilateral extensions since he took office, saying he has a deal in the works. 'As he has said many times, President Trump does not want TikTok to go dark,' White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement on Tuesday. 'This extension will last 90 days, which the Administration will spend working to ensure this deal is closed so that the American people can continue to use TikTok with the assurance that their data is safe and secure.' A reported deal to sell off TikTok got caught in U.S.-China trade tensions earlier this year. Just as the White House was preparing to unveil the finalized TikTok agreement ahead of an April 5 deadline, Beijing called ByteDance — TikTok's China-based parent company — and ordered it to pause the deal after Washington imposed a slew of reciprocal tariffs on China, along with dozens of other countries, a person familiar with the matter said. In Congress, Republicans are increasingly frustrated by the repeated extensions, but are still granting Trump space to negotiate a deal. 'We voted that it should be banned, and I look forward to the day that they can't continue to propagate Chinese talking points,' said Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.) on Tuesday before the announcement. Few lawmakers have been willing to voice their frustrations publicly, wary of crossing the president, even as they're frustrated by a TikTok negotiation that shows little sign of movement. One exception is Rep. John Moolenaar (R-Mich.), the head of the House select committee on China, who warned in a public op-ed in March that nothing short of complete divestment from Beijing would suffice.
Forbes
17 minutes ago
- Forbes
Trump Will Extend TikTok Ban Deadline A Third Time
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Tuesday that President Donald Trump will soon extend a deadline for ByteDance, TikTok's China-based owners, to divest the social media app before Thursday, marking his third delay after an earlier deal for the platform fell through. Leavitt said Trump will sign another executive order to keep TikTok operational in the U.S. for another 90 days, noting the extra time would be used by the Trump administration 'to ensure this deal is closed so that the American people can continue to use TikTok with the assurance that their data is safe and secure.' Trump told reporters on Air Force One he would 'probably' extend a June 19 deadline for ByteDance to divest from TikTok or sell its assets to an American firm, adding, 'Probably have to get China approval, but I think we'll get it.' Another extension would be Trump's third delaying a forced sale or divestment of TikTok, following earlier orders pushing back the deadline on Jan. 20 and April 4, when a deal was reportedly in place for TikTok's operations to be spun off into a new U.S.-based company before Trump's 'Liberation Day' tariffs derailed the talks. Trump told NBC News last month he would 'like to see [a deal] done' for TikTok, adding he had a 'little sweet spot in my heart' for the social media platform and he would be 'willing to give it [the deadline] an extension' if needed. It's also unclear whether Trump can continue delaying TikTok's ban. John Acevedo, a law professor at Emory University, argued Trump could continue to delay enforcing legislation for TikTok's ban through executive orders, though he could be forced to allow the ban if challenged by Congress or a court. Under the bill, Trump has the power to delay the ban for up to 90 days if there is 'significant progress' toward a deal. Several companies have emerged as potential suitors for TikTok's assets, including Amazon, Oracle and Microsoft. Amazon's bid for TikTok would include the entire company, unnamed people familiar with the offer told the New York Times, though some parties involved in the talks 'do not appear to be taking Amazon's bid seriously.' AppLovin reportedly made an offer for TikTok and spoke with billionaire Steve Wynn about backing the deal, after the company told the Trump administration it could address national security concerns about the app if it held ownership. The White House previously spoke with Oracle about a deal that would give the company oversight of TikTok's U.S. data, Politico reported. Trump has also named Microsoft as a possible buyer while saying he hoped there would be a 'bidding war' for TikTok. Users on TikTok and other social media platforms took credit for attendance at a parade celebrating the Army's 250th anniversary and Trump's 79th birthday. Some users advertised how to reserve tickets for the event, noting they had no intention of attending, as other users—including some claiming to be from Europe—said they reserved tickets and wouldn't attend. Social media users used similar tactics for one of Trump's election rallies in 2020, though tickets were not required for Saturday's parade. Legislation requiring TikTok to sell itself to an American company or be banned in the U.S. was signed under President Joe Biden last year. That law followed growing bipartisan national security concerns about the app in recent years, after reports claimed China relied on TikTok's U.S. data to spy on Americans. Forbes previously reported the app spied on journalists, mishandled advertiser data and stored financial data of some creators in China, though ByteDance has denied claims user privacy was compromised. Trump supported a ban on TikTok during his first administration, citing similar national security concerns, before calling on the Supreme Court to block the ban. He issued an executive order in January shortly after he took office, though the app briefly went dark for U.S. users.
CNN
34 minutes ago
- CNN
Analysis: Trump is flirting with strikes in Iran. That could be a tough sell at home.
For years now, Americans have been trending in a more isolationist, anti-war direction. Particularly on the right, the ascendant view is that the world's problems are not necessarily ours. Iran could be about to test that. President Donald Trump has in recent hours employed increasingly bold rhetoric about involving the United States in Israel's attacks on Iran. On Tuesday afternoon, he wrote on Truth Social that 'we now have complete and total control of the skies over Iran.' He added that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is an 'easy target,' and said, 'We are not going to take him out (kill!), at least not for now.' He called for Iran's 'UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER.' These comments came as CNN reported he's indeed quickly warming to using the US military to strike Iranian nuclear facilities. Trump has saber-rattled for effect before, so it's possible this is him employing the 'madman theory' of foreign policy again. But it's also evident that we're closer to a major new military confrontation than we've been in two decades. So how might Americans view it if Trump did involve the US military offensively? It's complicated. Americans have in recent years expressed plenty of worry about Iran and even support for hypothetical military strikes. But there is reason to believe military action today could be a bridge too far – for the same reasons Americans have been drifting away from foreign interventions. Much of the polling here is dated, and views are of course subject to change based on fresh circumstances. A 2019 Fox News poll is the most recent high-quality survey to ask directly about a situation like the one Trump is contemplating. And it found a significant level of support for using action to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons. American voters favored that 53% to 30% – a 23-point margin. The question from there is whether Americans would view that as indeed the purpose here. This is how Trump has billed potential strikes, saying Iran is on the verge of a nuclear weapon. But as recently as March of this year, his own director of national intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, testified quite the opposite. She said that the intel community had assessed that 'Iran is not building a nuclear weapon, and Supreme Leader [Ayatollah Ali] Khamenei has not authorized the nuclear weapons program that he suspended in 2003.' Trump disputed Gabbard's account on Tuesday, but it's not difficult to see her words – and US intelligence assessments about the lack of imminence of an Iranian nuclear weapon – becoming a problem. That's particularly because America's last major military foray, into neighboring Iraq, became so unpopular due how the Bush administration exaggerated the threat it posed. Americans have appeared open to military action in theory. The question from there is how immediate they view that threat as being. Some surveys indicate Americans do tend to view Iran as a major threat – and on a bipartisan basis: The same Fox poll showed 57% of Democrats and 65% of Republicans called Iran a 'real national security threat.' A 2023 Fox poll showed more than 6 in 10 Democrats and about 8 in 10 Republicans were at least 'very' concerned about Iran getting a nuke. And Gallup polling last year showed 93% of Republicans and 70% of Democrats described Iran developing nuclear weapons as a 'critical threat' to the vital interests of the United States. But other surveys suggest that perceived problem might not rank particularly high. Pew Research Center polling last year showed many more Americans felt China (64%) and Russia (59%) were major military threats than Iran (42%). Pew data last year also found only 37% of Americans said limiting Iran's power and influence should be a 'top priority.' It ranked lower than limiting Russia and China's power and about the same as North Korea's – while also falling below limiting climate change. And back in 2020, just 14% of Americans thought Iran was such a threat that it required immediate military action, according to a CBS News poll conducted by SSRS. A huge majority felt it was a threat that could be contained (64%), while 17% said it wasn't a threat. All of these numbers could change if Trump goes down the path toward the US hitting Iran. He has shown an ability to get Republicans, in particular, to buy into pretty much whatever he says. (Though some prominent conservative voices like Tucker Carlson have strongly rejected the idea of strikes, meaning there could even be some resistance there). Anyway, it's likely we'd see these numbers polarize. But US intelligence assessments had concluded that not only was Iran not actively pursuing a nuclear weapon — in contrast to Israeli warnings — but that it was also up to three years from being able to produce and deliver one to a target, CNN reported Tuesday. Trump's history with Iran also looms here. In 2020, he launched a controversial strike that killed a top Iranian commander, Qasem Soleimani. And polling often showed people leaned in favor of the strike. But polling also showed Americans said by double digits that the strike made us less safe domestically. And a CNN poll at the time showed Americans disapproved of Trump's handling of the situation with Iran also by double digits, 53-42%. All of which indicates Americans are concerned about blowback and don't have a particularly high degree of faith in Trump's Iran policies. The sum total of the data suggest that, while Americans are concerned about the prospect of Iran getting a nuclear weapon, they don't necessarily view it as an immediate problem necessitating the use of the US military. If someone asks you if you are worried about a nuclear foreign country, of course that sounds scary. You might even sign off on a hypothetical in which US military might be needed to combat that threat you fear. But it doesn't mean you think that's imminent enough to warrant putting US servicemembers in harm's way and setting off a major Middle Eastern war, today. And there's plenty of reason to believe Trump could – or at least should – approach this idea cautiously.
