Top Senate Democrats are learning to stop worrying and love TikTok.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, future Whip Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) and Appropriations Committee ranking member Patty Murray (Wash.) have all joined the Chinese-owned app since the summer. Murray and Democratic Sens. Adam Schiff (Calif.) and John Hickenlooper (Colo.) got accounts in recent days.
This followed President Donald Trump’s announcement late last month that there was a deal for American investors to take over TikTok’s U.S. operations.
It’s a turnaround from 2024, when all these lawmakers voted for a law that forced TikTok’s Chinese parent to divest from the app or face a ban from U.S. smartphones. But the worries over national security and privacy have taken a back seat as Democrats look to their coalition following last year’s losses.
“My concerns about TikTok haven’t disappeared, but I am not going to sit back and pass up the opportunity to get our message out to millions of Americans especially as more and more people get their news from social media,” Murray told us.
Hickenlooper told us Trump’s deal gave his team confidence to finally move Instagram content over to TikTok.
“Once Tiktok gets sorted out, and by that, I mean… we have American control of the TikTok that operates in our country, then that ban will go away,” he said.
We’ll note that the deal still hasn’t been finalized. TikTok isn’t allowed on government devices either.
Power platform. It’s not just Democrats either: Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.) joined TikTok the day Trump announced his plan to save the app for 170 million American users. Trump and Vice President JD Vance have opened TikTok accounts since that announcement as well.
In fact, several senators, some of whom voted for the divestiture law, have recently launched TikTok accounts. Many did so — usually from personal devices — despite there not being a deal in place.
Schiff’s recent account is a second, more official one where he posts legislative work, for instance. But Schiff has been posting from another account since long before Trump’s deal, even back when he was in the House last year.
The shift by many lawmakers to TikTok underscores how appealing the popular app is as a communication tool.
“I am seeing [Democrats] understand the power of that platform,” said Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.), who has urged his colleagues to embrace the app.
