A TikTok Ban Won’t Address the Real Threat to the Security of Americans

Here’s a joke: What happens when a Congress known for its gridlock, partisanship, and baffling inability to agree on anything finally reaches bipartisan consensus? Well, they ban TikTok, of course.

It’s a strange sight, like watching a herd of cats suddenly march in formation. This same Congress, perpetually divided on issues that would actually save and improve the lives of American children, can’t agree to strengthen public education, pass an assault weapons ban, or expand vital programs like Medicaid and SNAP benefits. But, faced with the specter of an app where kids lip-sync, dance, and, yes, scroll mindlessly for hours, they sprang into action with alarming speed and a rare unity. If only they acted with the same resolve on matters like feeding, educating, and protecting American children from real danger.

The National Security Elephant in the Room

Let’s address the supposed national security threat TikTok poses. Owned by ByteDance, a Chinese tech giant, TikTok is an easy political target in a nation already jittery about Chinese espionage and influence. Lawmakers argue that TikTok’s data collection could funnel sensitive information to the Chinese Communist Party. It’s a plausible concern — national security isn’t something to trifle with.

But let’s put this in context. TikTok collects user data, as do Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, and every other tech giant headquartered in the U.S. TikTok’s algorithms are designed to harvest clicks and time on screen, not nuclear launch codes. If China wanted sensitive information about the habits and behavior of U.S. citizens, it could get it from American firms whose privacy practices are laughable at best.

As of 2022, TikTok had over 150 million users in the United States — a lot of young people, yes, but hardly a unique national security threat compared to cyberattacks on critical infrastructure or disinformation campaigns that target American elections. Lawmakers eager to ban the platform ignore one crucial factor: the real crisis isn’t the app itself but the conditions that make a generation of young Americans so susceptible to online distractions.

Young, Dumb, and Numb: The Consequence of Failed Governance

If Congress aims to protect American children, it is focusing on the wrong villain. Our children are at greater risk of becoming young, dumb, and numb — numb to the world, opportunity, and their potential — because our leaders have left their futures hanging by a thread.

Let’s talk about the numbers:

• Gun violence is now the leading cause of death among American children and teenagers, according to the CDC. Despite this grim reality, Congress remains paralyzed in passing meaningful gun control legislation, including an assault weapons ban supported by 63% of Americans (Pew Research, 2023).
• Child hunger is still a crisis. As of 2021, 12.5% of children in the U.S. lived in food-insecure households, according to the USDA. Expanding SNAP benefits could alleviate this problem, but many lawmakers resist efforts to do so.
• Healthcare inequities persist. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, over 4 million children remain uninsured despite clear evidence that expanding Medicaid and CHIP could ensure coverage and save lives.
• Public education funding remains a national embarrassment. The U.S. spends an average of $13,000 per student per year in public schools, trailing behind many developed nations in per-pupil expenditures. Meanwhile, teachers across the country struggle with underfunded classrooms and inadequate salaries.

These are the real threats to American children — a lack of education, food insecurity, and exposure to deadly violence. Yet, rather than find consensus on these urgent matters, Congress has found a convenient distraction in TikTok.

The Irony of Political Posturing

The TikTok ban is not just a distraction but a symptom of a more significant issue: politicians are more concerned with appearances than with action. It’s easier to point to an app as a scapegoat than to confront the systemic problems created by decades of political inaction. By banning TikTok, Congress can pretend it is doing something for America’s youth without confronting the more uncomfortable truths.

It’s ironic. While lawmakers rail against TikTok’s supposed brain-numbing effects on young Americans, they remain unwilling to address the policies that leave so many of our children vulnerable, undereducated, and under-protected.

Let’s be clear: I’m not defending TikTok as a social good. It’s an app designed to addict and distract, no doubt about it. But in a world where American children are more likely to die from gun violence than from any other cause, the most significant national security threat isn’t a video-sharing platform. It’s the complete failure of leadership in Washington.

What Real Leadership Looks Like

If Congress truly cared about the well-being of American children, they’d focus their bipartisan energy on:

• Passing universal background checks and banning assault weapons to protect our children from school shootings.
• Expanding Medicaid and SNAP benefits to ensure children have access to healthcare and food.
• Increasing funding for public education to give teachers and students the resources they need to succeed.

Of course, these measures require more than political grandstanding. They demand courage — the courage our divided Congress has sorely lacked.

A Generation Waiting for Real Change

The TikTok ban might serve as political theater, but it won’t fix what ails America’s youth. They’re waiting for real leadership, not symbolic victories. They’re waiting for a Congress that prioritizes their safety, their health, and their futures.

Until then, they’ll keep scrolling — through TikTok, through the news, and through the wreckage of promises unfulfilled.

If our lawmakers can come together to ban an app, maybe they can find a way to ban hunger, illiteracy, and violence from the lives of American children. Until then, all they’ve done is slap a band-aid on a generation in need of surgery.

The real national security crisis isn’t TikTok. It’s the failure of our leaders to govern.