> Still, why, you might ask, do I think the Chinese government actually controls TikTok? Well for one thing, the Chinese government says it will not allow a div

> Still, why, you might ask, do I think the Chinese government actually controls TikTok? Well for one thing, the Chinese government says it will not allow a divestment of the American branch of TikTok. And that doesn’t make sense unless the Chinese government exercises some level of control over the video sharing service. So I think we have to assume it does. There’s also a really easy test of whether there’s bad intent vis-a-vis TikTok. Just pass this bill. If the Chinese government is willing to torch hundreds of billions of dollars to thwart a divestment of TikTok, then clearly it wants to control TikTok for non-monetary reasons. You may as well argue that Grindr is "actually controlled" by the USG because CFIUS stepped in to block its sale post-closing. And having leverage over an company is not the same as controlling it. Else we'd have to conclude that ASML is "actually controlled" by the USG because USG can use its leverage over ASML to dictate whom it can sell its products to.