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President-elect Trump could keep his pledge to “save” TikTok – and still address national security concerns that spurred Congress to authorize a ban — by brokering a sale of the Chinese-owned app to a US buyer, experts told The Post.

China-based ByteDance has until Jan. 19 to completely divest its stake in TikTok or face a total US ban of the app.

In a last-ditch scramble to nix the law, ByteDance and TikTok have appealed to the Supreme Court and cozied up to Trump in the hope that he can somehow intervene.

The Supreme Court agreed to take up the case on Wednesday and has scheduled oral arguments for Jan. 10 — just nine days before the ban takes effect.

A US appeals court previously rejected TikTok’s bid to block the bill in a 3-0 decision, which suggests the company faces an uphill battle to win a late reprieve.

If Trump agrees that TikTok should remain online in the US and decides to get involved, a full divestiture is the only realistic path forward, according to Michael Sobolik, senior fellow at American Foreign Policy Council and author of Countering Chinas Great Game.

If you really want TikTok to operate in the United States, and if you want it to operate safely for Americans, then there needs to be a complete separation from its parent company, Sobolik said. And there cannot be any sort of ownership or control, direct or indirect, from a foreign adversary government. I don’t think there’s any alternative.

Trump who led the original push to ban TikTok during his first term said at a Monday press conference that he has a warm spot in my heart for TikTok and would take a look at the situation. Soon after, Trump met with TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.

Details from the meeting have yet to emerge and its unclear whether the talks between Trump and Chew yielded any progress toward a resolution.

Representatives for TikTok and the Trump transition team did not return requests for comment.

Brokering a deal will be no easy feat. TikTok has insisted that it is not for sale and argued that the tight divestment window made finding a buyer impossible, even if it were inclined.

China also has said it will resist any attempt to force a TikTok sale and Beijing has export controls to stop the sale of its algorithm.

Still, the looming deadline creates a great opportunity for a win-win situation if Trump can hammer out a deal, according to Rep. John Moolenaar (R-Mich.), chairman of the House Select Committee on China, which led the charge on the ban-or-sale bill.

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President Trump is a great negotiator. He loves America. He loves our national security, Moolenaar told The Post. He also recognizes that TikTok is a very valuable platform, and I think he will be able to put together a coalition of people who want to see this app continue in the United States, but do it in a secure way.

The Justice Department described TikTok as a national-security threat of immense depth and scale that functions as a Chinese spying and propaganda tool on US soil, capable of secretly manipulating content served to users through its recommendation algorithm and mass data collection such as location-tracking, among other risks.

TikTok has argued that the sale-or-ban law is unconstitutional and vehemently denied that it poses a threat to national security.

Aside from helping to negotiate a deal for TikTok, Trump is limited in what he can do to intervene. The law gives the president the power to impose a 90-day extension on the Jan. 19 deadline if there are signs of significant progress toward a deal.

Trump could push Congress to amend or reverse the law, but that could prove difficult given the overwhelming bipartisan support it received.

He could also direct the Justice Department not to enforce the law but that would shift major legal liability to app store operators like Google and Apple.

Last week, the House Select Committee on China sent letters to Google’s Sundar Pichai and Apple’s Tim Cook reminding them they are obligated to remove TikTok from their app stores by Jan. 19 if a sale wasn’t reached.

The uncertainty about Trumps strategy on TikTok has created a conundrum for Republicans including some close allies who have vocally supported a ban.

“Trump was the original champion for the TikTok ban, so it makes it difficult for his fellow Republicans to now have another opinion, one DC insider who requested anonymity said. Trump can get away with that, but they certainly can’t.”

While softening his rhetoric toward TikTok, Trump has appointed several China hawks and outspoken TikTok critics to key Cabinet and government agency positions.

That includes Secretary of State nominee Marco Rubio, Under Secretary of State nominee Jacob Helberg, incoming US Ambassador to the United Nations Elise Stefanik and FCC Chairman Brendan Carr.

Its possible that Trump will seek to use TikTok as a bargaining chip as part of broader negotiations with China, according to Nathan Leamer, a former FCC policy adviser and CEO of Fixed Gear Strategies.

With Trump in office, its a whole new ballgame to hold China accountable, Leamer said. TikTok is an arrow in his quiver. Maybe they do make a deal for the CCP to divest. No one is against the platform if its separate from ownership by a totalitarian state.

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‘Chipocalypse Now’: Trump threatens ‘war’ on Chicago in immigration crackdown

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'Chipocalypse Now': Trump threatens 'war' on Chicago in immigration crackdown

Donald Trump has signalled his intention to send troops to Chicago to ramp up the deportation of illegal immigrants – by posting an AI-generated parody image from Apocalypse Now on social media.

There were protests in the city, the largest in Illinois, on Saturday night, with thousands of people marching past Trump Tower to demonstrate against possible immigration raids.

That came as the US president ramped up his threats to deploy federal authorities and military personnel in Chicago, as he has done in Los Angeles and Washington DC.

In a post on Truth Social, Mr Trump shared an AI-generated image of himself as a military officer in the movie Apocalypse Now, with the title changed to “Chipocalypse Now” over flames and the city skyline.

The post – a screenshot from X – said: “‘I love the smell of deportations in the morning…’. Chicago about to find out why it’s called the Department of WAR.”

Pic: Truth Social
Image:
Pic: Truth Social

Mr Trump signed an executive order on Friday to rename the Pentagon as the Department of War.

“The President of the United States is threatening to go to war with an American city. This is not a joke,” Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, a Democrat, wrote in a post on X, responding to Mr Trump’s post.

“This is not normal. Donald Trump isn’t a strongman, he’s a scared man. Illinois won’t be intimidated by a wannabe dictator.”

Mr Pritzker previously said that he believed Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids would coincide with Mexican Independence Day festivals scheduled for this weekend and next weekend.

Some Mexican festivals in the Chicago area were postponed or cancelled over the threatened stings.

A protest against threatened immigration raids in Chicago on Saturday. Pic: AP
Image:
A protest against threatened immigration raids in Chicago on Saturday. Pic: AP

A military deployment in Chicago has long been reported. Last month, the Pentagon was said to be drafting plans to send the US Army to Illinois.

In a statement responding to that report, originally from The Washington Post, Mr Pritzker said the state had “made no requests for federal intervention” and accused Mr Trump of “attempting to manufacture a crisis”.

Vice president JD Vance said on Wednesday that there were “no immediate plans” to send the National Guard to Chicago.

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ICE arrests 475 Hyundai workers

On Thursday, ICE agents carried out a raid at a Hyundai car battery plant in Georgia, saying 475 people, mostly South Koreans, were found to be illegally working there.

It marked the largest single-site enforcement operation in the history of the Department of Homeland Security, which includes ICE.

The day after the raid, ICE posted a video and photos of workers shackled at the wrists, waist and ankles getting on a bus.

South Korean junior foreign minister Park Yoon-joo told a US government official in a phone call that the video release was regrettable.

Seoul’s foreign ministry added the post came “at a critical time, when the momentum of trust and cooperation” between the two countries, forged through their first summit, “must be maintained”.

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Sports

‘Fearless’ Mateer’s risks pay off as OU tops U-M

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'Fearless' Mateer's risks pay off as OU tops U-M

NORMAN, Okla. — A week after John Mateer threw for the most yards in an Oklahoma quarterback debut against Illinois State, the transfer passer’s instinctive playmaking highlighted an imperfect performance that helped propel the No. 18 Sooners to a 24-13 win over No. 15 Michigan on Saturday night.

While Oklahoma smothered Wolverines freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood, Mateer completed 21 of his 34 passes for 270 yards with a passing touchdown and an interception. He also finished with a team-high 19 carries for 74 yards, adding a pair of rushing scores on either side of halftime in his second career start for the Sooners.

“You saw what he can do,” Oklahoma head coach Brent Venables said of Mateer. “He falls forward a lot. He’s got great strength and great skills. Tough guy. He’s fearless. He attacks everything without fear.”

Playing behind four new offensive line starters, including freshman left tackle Michael Fasusi, Mateer remained poised against the Michigan pass rush early, connecting on completions of 34, 31 and 21 yards across the Sooners’ initial pair of offensive drives. According to ESPN Research, Mateer finished 8-of-13 with 156 passing yards and a touchdown in blitzing situations Saturday.

Oklahoma opened the scoring on its opening possession via a pop pass from Mateer to wide receiver Deion Burks, who logged a team-high seven receptions for 101 yards. Mateer’s 2-yard rushing score with 22 seconds remaining in the second quarter handed Oklahoma a 14-0 halftime lead, and he used his legs again for a 10-yard touchdown run early in the third quarter.

Mateer’s 19 carries marked the fourth-highest single-game tally of his career and included three runs of at least 10 yards. With his pair of rushing scores, Mateer joined Lamar Jackson and D’Eriq King as the only FBS players to record at least one passing and rushing score in eight consecutive games since 2015, according to ESPN Research, dating to his breakout campaign at Washington State last fall.

“John’s a willing runner,” Sooners offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle said. “He understands what it takes to win. They’re definitely designed QB runs in the game. At the end of the day, you’re just trying to win a football game, and John Mateer is willing [to run]. He probably took a big hit or two tonight. But hopefully all for the good of the team.”

Mateer’s night was not without mistakes. He was intercepted by Michigan defensive back TJ Metcalf in the first quarter after overthrowing tight end Will Huggins. Mateer was nearly intercepted again after halftime, and his third-quarter overthrow in the end zone beyond the hands of tight end Jaren Kanak cost the Sooners seven points as the Wolverines mounted a second-half comeback.

But Mateer’s risk-taking and flair for the extraordinary were also the drivers for Oklahoma in only the Sooners’ third win over a top-15 opponent under Venables. The Sooners led 14-7 early in the third quarter when Mateer shed a tackle in the backfield, rolled to his right and fired a 36-yard strike to wide receiver Isaiah Sategna. Mateer ran in his second touchdown and lifted the Sooners to a 21-7 advantage just two plays later.

“The thing with John, I trust that kid to like no end,” Arbuckle said. “He understands moments and situations. He knows when to take a chance, when not to take a chance. So whenever he lets one rip and puts the ball in what someone may say is a risky situation, whenever he does that, I have the utmost confidence that he’s making the right decision.”

Another one of Mateer’s risks paid off early in the fourth quarter, ultimately launching an 8:27 drive that allowed Oklahoma to drain the remaining minutes and any lingering hope of a Michigan comeback.

Facing second-and-10 from the Sooners’ 38-yard line, Mateer again rolled out and — with Wolverines linebacker Jaishawn Barham bearing down on him — made a daring throw off his back foot into heavy traffic to find Kanak for a 9-yard connection.

“[Kanak] kind of went to the open space and I threw it a little dangerous,” Mateer said. “But he made it happen.”

A timely bit of innovation, Mateer’s throw marked the start of a 16-play, 78-yard scoring drive that effectively iced Oklahoma’s Week 2 victory and showed off the very best of Mateer and what his game-changing playmaking ability can offer the Sooners.

Oklahoma visits Temple in Week 3 before embarking on a gauntlet of an SEC schedule at home against Auburn on Sept. 20.

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Business

Unions demand no retreat on workers’ rights after Rayner quits

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Unions demand no retreat on workers' rights after Rayner quits

Union leaders are demanding no eleventh-hour retreat by the government on workers’ rights now their champion Angela Rayner is no longer in the cabinet.

As delegates gather in Brighton for the TUC’s annual conference, the movement’s leadership is claiming four million people – one in eight of the UK workforce – are in “pervasive” insecure work.

And union bosses are urging the government to stand firm and reject attempts by Tories and Liberal Democrats to weaken the former deputy prime minister’s Employment Rights Bill in its final stages in parliament.

The TUC’s general secretary, Paul Nowak, has claimed Ms Rayner, who resigned on Friday over unpaid stamp duty on a seaside flat, was a victim of misogyny and was being hounded out by right-wing politicians and right-wing media.

Paul Nowak believes Angela Rayner was a victim of misogyny
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Paul Nowak believes Angela Rayner was a victim of misogyny


As well as Ms Rayner leaving the government, the other minister driving the bill through parliament, Jonathan Reynolds, was demoted in Sir Keir Starmer’s cabinet reshuffle from the senior post of business secretary to chief whip.

Until last week, Ms Rayner had been expected to deliver the keynote Labour Party speech at the TUC on Tuesday, but it emerged midweek that the education secretary, Bridget Phillipson, would be the speaker.

However, in Friday’s reshuffle she lost responsibility for adult skills – a key issue for the unions – to the new work and pensions secretary Pat McFadden, who will now head a new, beefed-up super-ministry promoting growth.

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And ironically, the TUC conference in Brighton is taking place less than two miles from the luxury seaside flat in Hove, on which Ms Rayner’s avoidance of £40,000 in stamp duty led to her resignation as deputy PM, housing secretary and Labour deputy leader.

Just before parliament’s summer recess, the House of Lords backed by 304 votes to 160 a Tory-led amendment to Ms Rayner’s bill to reduce the qualifying period for unfair dismissal claims from two years to six months, rather than from day one, as proposed by Ms Rayner.

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The rise and fall of Angela Rayner

Third reading of the bill in the Lords was last Wednesday, the day of Ms Rayner’s Sky News confession, and the bill is now set for parliamentary ping-pong, assuming the government overturns the Lords’ amendments in the Commons.

But in a pre-conference interview with Sky News, TUC chief and Rayner supporter Mr Nowak demanded no diluting of her bill, which also includes banning zero hours contracts which exploit workers and fire and rehire.

Read more:
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What a moment for Shabana Mahmood
Cooper picking up the reins at a challenging time

“We are now at a crucial stage in the delivery of the Employment Rights Bill, just weeks away from Royal Assent,” said Mr Nowak. “And our clear message to the government will be to deliver the bill and deliver it in full.

“Ignore the amendments from the unelected peers, Tory and Lib Dem peers in the House of Lords, that are aimed at gutting the legislation, weakening workers’ rights.

“Stand with the British public, deliver decent employment rights. That’s important in workplaces up and down the country, but it’s important because these are proposals that are popular with the British public as well.”

Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson will be making a speech at the TUC's conference
Image:
Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson will be making a speech at the TUC’s conference

The TUC says its analysis shows low-paid jobs in occupations such as the care, leisure and service sectors account for 77% of the increase in insecure jobs since 2011.

Black and ethnic minority ethnic workers account for 70% of the explosion in insecure work, according to the TUC, and southwest England and Yorkshire and Humber are insecure work hotspots.

Mr Nowak told Sky News: “We’ve got well over a million people now on zero-hours contracts. We’ve got millions of people who don’t have sick pay from day one and 70% of the kids who live in poverty have parents who go out to work.

“The government is absolutely right to be focused on making work pay. And the Employment Rights Bill is about putting more money in the pockets of working people, giving people more security at work.

“That’s good for workers, but it’s also good for good employers as well, so they’re not undercut by the cowboys.”

Speaking to Sky News last Wednesday, shortly after Ms Rayner’s tearful confession to Sky’s political editor Beth Rigby, Mr Nowak said: “There’s a real heavy dose of misogyny when it comes to Angela.

“Angela Rayner is playing a really important role in government and I wouldn’t want to see her hounded out of an important role by right-wing politicians and the right-wing media, who frankly can’t handle the fact that a working-class woman is our deputy prime minister.”

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