Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says the TikTok saga is headed for a clean landing. On “Face the Nation,” Bessent announced that negotiators have reached a “final deal” in Madrid and that “as of today, all the details are ironed out,” with President Donald Trump and China’s President Xi set to “consummate” the agreement on Thursday in Korea. Diplomatic understatement? Perhaps. But results speak louder than pundit panels.
Pressed by host Margaret Brennan on whether China agreed to give up control of TikTok’s algorithm, Bessent didn’t share specifics. Translation: the grown-ups finished the homework; you’ll see it when it’s graded.
Let’s remember how we got here. Talks over TikTok have been underway since before President Trump took office. Shortly after inauguration, Trump postponed the April 2024 law signed by former President Joe Biden that would have forced ByteDance to divest or face a U.S. ban, then extended enforcement again in September to make space for a real agreement with China. You know—negotiate first, grandstand later.
When Trump signed his executive order outlining the framework, he was crystal clear: “This is going to be American-operated all the way.” He also noted his “great respect for President Xi,” and appreciation that Xi approved the deal—because to “get it done properly,” U.S. and Chinese sign-off were necessary. That’s called using leverage, not leaving it on the table.
The executive order’s text lays out the security backbone: remove the TikTok app and related products from the “control” of a foreign adversary; prevent any “operational relationship” with a formerly affiliated, adversary-controlled entity; and require that sensitive U.S. user data be stored in a cloud environment run by an American company. In short: keep our data here, keep their hands off it. Radical concept, we know.
Bottom line: a finalized framework, leadership ready to close the deal, and safeguards that put American control and American security first. That’s what competence looks like—and it’s the kind of win that reminds us this country still knows how to protect its people while keeping innovation alive.
