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Joe Biden traveled to South Carolina on Sunday, his last full day as US president, where he urged Americans to “keep the faith in a better day to come” as he marked the national holiday honoring civil rights icon Martin Luther King Jr.A scant day before turning the White House over to Donald Trump, Biden attended services at Royal Missionary Baptist Church, a historically Black church in North Charleston.Promising that he is “not going anywhere,” Biden told the congregants that America “must stay engaged, we must always keep the faith in a better day to come.”He also spoke about the continued fight to make King’s dream of a color-blind nation “a reality.”Racial progress has never moved in a smooth arc in the United States, and some have described the election of Trump — who in 2015 insisted that Barack Obama was not an American — as a step backward.But Biden told the congregants that “every time I spend time in a Black church I think of one thing: the word ‘hope.'”Monday is a US national holiday honoring King, the Nobel Peace Prize winner who advocated for non-violent resistance in the fight for equal rights for Black Americans. He was assassinated in 1968.- ‘What this country needed’ -South Carolina was pivotal in Biden’s path to securing the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination in 2020 — which paved the way for his defeat that year of then-incumbent Donald Trump — and Biden on Sunday thanked South Carolina Representative Jim Clyburn for his key endorsement that year.”I would not be standing — that’s not hyperbole — here at this pulpit were it not for Jim Clyburn,” the president said.Clyburn, who is Black, later choked up when returning the favor. “Joe Biden has been what this country needed,” he said. “People don’t always appreciate it.”Biden won a mostly favorable but slightly mixed reception during his South Carolina visit on Sunday. While crowds waved at his passing motorcade and people held signs saying “Thank You Joe,” one small group chanted “Biden is a war criminal,” blaming him for the high death toll in the fighting in Gaza. He also spoke briefly about the landmark ceasefire agreement for Gaza that took force earlier Sunday, saying, “The road to this deal has not been easy at all.” In brief remarks Sunday about the Mideast, Biden told reporters that the incipient Gaza ceasefire offered hope, but that its continuing success “will depend on the next administration.”He added that Israel’s crushing attacks on militants in southern Lebanon meant that that country now faced “an opportunity for a future free from the grip of Hezbollah.”Charleston is home to the historic Mother Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church, where a white shooter killed nine Black worshippers in 2015. While Biden, just before Christmas, commuted the death penalties of 37 people in federal prisons, he made two exceptions: those of Djokhar Tsarnaev, involved in the 2013 bombing of the Boston Marathon, and Dylann Roof, the man behind the Emanuel AME shooting.Early Sunday, the White House announced that, in one of his final official acts, Biden had pardoned Marcus Garvey, a Jamaican-born writer and orator seen by some as a prophet who advocated for a return to Africa.Garvey had been convicted of mail fraud and sentenced to prison, but the sentence was commuted in 1927 by President Calvin Coolidge. Biden’s pardon expunges Garvey’s conviction from the record.

US President-elect Donald Trump laid a wreath Sunday in a symbolic trip to the most hallowed place for America’s war dead, before holding a huge victory rally on the eve of his return to power.Already involved in negotiations to restore the TikTok app at home and in peace efforts in the Middle East, Trump finds himself embroiled in world events before his second term has even started. But the billionaire Republican, 78, is still taking time for pre-inauguration ceremonies including his trip to Arlington National Cemetery on the outskirts of Washington.Wearing a black overcoat, red tie and black gloves, Trump stood in silence alongside incoming vice president JD Vance before the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.Trump then laid a wreath of white flowers with a red, white and blue ribbon, before saluting while a bugler played “Taps.” His wife Melania and several family members were also present. The somber ceremony contrasted with Trump’s last trip to the cemetery as presidential candidate in August, when the US army criticized his staff for pushing a cemetery employee.Trump has had a troubled relationship with the military, and while often touting his support for the armed forces he privately mocked the war dead while president, according to his former chief of staff.The mood will change to one of festivity later Sunday when Trump hosts a star-studded “Make America Great Again Victory Rally” at a sports arena in Washington.- ‘Golden Age’ -Large lines were already forming for the rally, which will include a performance by the Village People — whose 1970s-era “Y.M.C.A.” became the theme for a much-memed Trump dance during his campaign — in addition to singers Kid Rock and Billy Ray Cyrus.Trump’s hopes for a huge crowd to see his inauguration at the US Capitol on Monday took a blow, however, when forecasts of freezing weather prompted organizers to move the ceremony indoors.Instead of being sworn in on the steps of the Capitol, Trump will now take the oath under the massive dome of its Rotunda, last used for the ceremony 40 years ago during the inauguration of Ronald Reagan.”You’re going to hear President Trump talk about how we are entering a Golden Age of America” in his inaugural speech, his incoming press secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News.Once back in the Oval Office, Trump has vowed a series of swift actions starting with the deportation of millions of undocumented migrants.The expulsions will “begin very, very quickly,” Trump told NBC on Sunday — though his border czar Tom Homan said the administration was rethinking plans for an initial showcase raid in Chicago after its plans leaked to the media.Trump said he will immediately sign a record number of executive orders, undoing many of the policies advanced during President Joe Biden’s outgoing administration. Biden traveled to South Carolina on Sunday, his last full day as US president, to mark a national holiday honoring civil rights icon Martin Luther King Jr.- TikTok ‘deal’ -The Trump effect has already been on display, with TikTok crediting his “clarity” for being able to restore service in the United States after briefly going dark due to a ban on national security grounds.Trump promised on Sunday to issue an executive order delaying the ban to allow time to “make a deal” to remove TikTok’s US subsidiary from Chinese ownership. The Trump administration has already forged deep links with the tech world, with X boss Elon Musk set to head a cost-cutting drive in the new government. Musk, Meta chief Mark Zuckerberg and Amazon boss Jeff Bezos will all be at his side for the inauguration. In the Middle East, the first three Israeli hostages were released Sunday under a Gaza truce that Trump’s team had been involved in along with Biden’s administration.Americans are meanwhile increasingly embracing some of Trump’s policies, a New York Times poll showed Sunday, despite a divisive first term and the fact that he is the first convicted felon to be elected president.Just over half of Americans want him to follow through on mass deportations, even if they oppose his threats to exact retribution on his political enemies, according to the Times poll.

Disney’s “Mufasa: The Lion King” topped the North American box office on a long holiday weekend after ceding the top spot a week earlier, analysts said Sunday.The animated film earned an estimated $15.5 million for the period from Friday to Monday, which is Martin Luther King Jr. Day, industry watcher Exhibitor Relations said.Two new releases — Sony’s “One of Them Days” and Universal’s “Wolf Man” — took over the second and third spots.Analyst David A. Gross predicted a “very profitable run” for “One of Them Days, which stars Keke Palmer and singer/songwriter SZA as roommates scrambling to pay rent or face eviction after a boyfriend spends their money.The film earned an estimated $14 million over the holiday weekend.”This is an excellent opening for an original Black American comedy,” he said, boosted by “sensational critics reviews and an excellent audience score.”Horror film “Wolf Man,” starring Christopher Abbott and Julia Garner, came in below analysts’ expectations, with $12 million over four days. As the start of a new horror series and as a remake of the 1941 classic starring Bela Lugosi, gross called the box office take “weak.”In fourth spot, down one spot from last weekend, was Paramount’s animated “Sonic the Hedgehog 3” at $10.3 million.And in fifth, hanging strong in its eighth weekend out, was “Moana 2” at $8.4 million.Those numbers propelled the Disney blockbuster past the $1 billion mark globally. It is the studio’s third 2024 release to hit the billion-dollar club after “Deadpool and Wolverine” and “Inside Out 2.”Rounding out the top 10 were:”Den of Thieves 2: Pantera” ($7.8 million)”Nosferatu” ($5.1 million)”A Complete Unknown” ($4.6 million)”Wicked” ($4.56 million)”Babygirl” ($2.5 million)

Donald Trump, who returned to Washington this weekend before his inauguration, is staying at the historic residence Blair House before moving back into the White House on Monday. The austere three-story facade is where select foreign visitors have been sumptuously housed, and where one US president escaped an assassination attempt. Charles de Gaulle, the late queen Elizabeth II and the emperor of Japan are among the guests who have stayed in the venerable brick structure across from the White House, in the heart of the federal capital.Blair House actually comprises four contiguous buildings, forming a complex of 70,000 square feet (6,500 square meters) — larger than the White House itself — including 119 opulently decorated rooms dedicated to welcoming foreign leaders or providing a venue for high-stakes diplomatic talks.In the back, a quiet garden with a fountain, park benches and ivy-covered walls allows visitors a chance to enjoy fresh air far from the tourists who swarm Pennsylvania Avenue.The president’s guest house, as it is often described, has been the scene of marathon negotiating sessions over the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and meetings of G7 finance ministers.It also played host to a colorful visit in the 1990s by heavy-drinking Russian president Boris Yeltsin who, according to Bill Clinton, was seen one day in 1995 hailing a taxi out front in his underwear and, a day later, was mistaken for a drunken intruder wandering in the building’s basement.In 1998, British prime minister Tony Blair played on the similarity in names, quipping that he felt “kind of at home” when he stayed at Blair House.- Guns and cigar smoke -In addition to welcoming foreign dignitaries, it is in Blair House where a US president-elect traditionally spends the last few days before his inauguration.That gave rise to a minor kerfuffle in 2009. Democratic president-elect Barack Obama arrived from Chicago with his family and hoped to move into Blair House early while preparing for the mammoth celebration around his historic January 20 inauguration. But the Republican administration of George W. Bush said he could not move in before the 15th, offering the excuse that a former Australian prime minister, in town to receive an award, was still there — an excuse that met with skepticism from some commentators.Despite a lack of extensive security surrounding Blair House at the time, President Harry Truman and his family spent years there while the White House was undergoing a major renovation.That minimal protective layer made it possible on November 1, 1950 for two armed Puerto Rican independence activists to break in in a vain attempt to assassinate Truman. One assailant and a policeman were killed.Inadequate security was also blamed when, in September 2000, an intruder managed to reach the room where the Indian prime minister, Atal Behari Vajpayee, was staying. Vajpayee was not present at the time.Built in 1824, Blair House was soon purchased by Francis Preston Blair, editor in chief of the Washington Globe newspaper and a close advisor of President Andrew Jackson, who used the building as a venue for a sort of salon for the city’s elite.In 1942, the US government purchased Blair House at the urging of president Franklin D. Roosevelt. His patience had been tried by White House visitor Winston Churchill, who would fill the mansion’s hallways with acrid cigar smoke and once tried to rouse FDR at three in the morning for a chat.

Thousands of demonstrators marched through the streets of Washington on Saturday in protest at the policies of Donald Trump and his Republican Party, two days before the billionaire reclaims the Oval Office.The “People’s March” has been organized by a collective of civil rights and social justice groups, including the team behind the Women’s March, which drew hundreds of thousands of people to the US capital in the wake of Trump’s first inauguration in 2017.Participants are highlighting a range of issues which they say are under attack from Trump and his party’s leaders, including abortion access, climate change, the need for better protections against gun violence, and immigrant rights.Colorful signs and plenty of pink pussy hats — a throwback to the 2017 event — dotted the crowd in downtown Washington, which gathered at three parks before converging for a march to the Lincoln Memorial for a rally.”These laws endanger our lives. Women are dying,” said demonstrator Aisha Becker-Burrowes, who was barely audible over the crowd’s chants of “My body, my choice.”Susan Duclos, a 60-year-old who came from Florida with her daughter to protest, said she was “scared” and “angry” about Trump’s return to office.”So many people are voting against their own interests. I don’t understand it,” Duclos told AFP.Another protester, Carine — a 40-year-old who came from Arizona and declined to give her last name — said she was afraid of what might happen during Trump’s second term but was committed to remaining engaged.”I’m trying to remain hopeful. It feels very good to be surrounded with so many people. I’ll continue the fight back home,” she told AFP, adding that it was her first time protesting in the US capital.Sarah Kong, a 31-year-old psychiatrist who came from Colorado with her mother to participate, echoed Carine’s nervous optimism.”This is my first time marching. And I want to do this again. I feel motivated, stimulated by all these people. I have faith in the future, even though I’m scared,” Kong said.”These are important times.”Sister marches were planned nationwide, including in New York.The catch-all march was unfolding after Trump’s incoming “border czar” Tom Homan told Fox News that a “big raid” would be carried out across the country shortly after Trump takes the oath of office on Monday. Trump, who defeated Vice President Kamala Harris in November’s presidential election, is returning to the White House for a second term. He has vowed swift action to deport millions of undocumented migrants upon taking office.Trump was due to arrive in Washington later Saturday to begin his inaugural festivities with a private event featuring fireworks at his golf club in the Virginia suburbs. 

President-elect Donald Trump on Sunday called for the United States to take part-ownership in TikTok and vowed to issue an executive order delaying a looming ban on the wildly popular app to allow time to “make a deal.” Trump’s announcement came hours after TikTok went dark in the United States under a law banning it in the name of national security, as a deadline for its Chinese owners ByteDance to sell its US subsidiary to non-Chinese buyers lapsed. The law however includes a clause allowing for a 90-day delay if the White House can show progress toward a viable deal, but so far ByteDance has flatly refused any sale.Outgoing President Joe Biden’s administration said it would leave the matter to Trump — who takes office on Monday — and that it would not enforce any ban.”I will issue an executive order on Monday to extend the period of time before the law’s prohibitions take effect, so that we can make a deal to protect our national security,” Trump said on his Truth Social platform. He said he “would like the United States to have a 50% ownership position in a joint venture,” arguing that the app’s value could surge to “hundreds of billions of dollars — maybe trillions.””By doing this, we save TikTok, keep it in good hands,” Trump wrote.From teenage dancers to grandmothers sharing cooking tips, TikTok has been embraced for its ability to transform ordinary users into global celebrities when a video goes viral.But it is also rife with disinformation, and its Chinese ownership has long spurred national security fears, internationally as well as in the United States.In an earlier message to dismayed users trying to access the app on Sunday, TikTok said that “we are fortunate that President Trump has indicated that he will work with us on a solution to reinstate TikTok once he takes office. Please stay tuned!”Trump, who had previously backed a TikTok ban and during his first term in office made moves towards one, did not offer further details on how such a deal would work. Sunday’s blackout came after the US Supreme Court on Friday upheld the legislation banning it pending any sale.But the app now has a fan in Trump, who — since signing an executive order stepping up pressure on ByteDance to sell in 2020 — has since credited the app with connecting him to younger voters.It is unclear what the incoming president can do to lift the ban unless ByteDance sells, however.”Congress wrote this law to be virtually president-proof,” warned Adam Kovacevich, chief executive of industry trade group Chamber of Progress.- ‘I love TikTok’ -Besides removing TikTok from app stores, the law requires Apple and Google to block new downloads, with the companies liable for penalties of up to $5,000 per user if the app is accessed.Oracle, which hosts TikTok’s servers, would also be legally obligated to enforce the ban.Other social media platforms such as X were flooded with memes and comments mourning the move Sunday — though some posts were more cynical, with many pointing to Trump’s own previous efforts to ban TikTok.In Europe, TikTok’s suspension drew praise from the foreign minister of Estonia — among the countries most resilient to disinformation, according to the European Media Literacy Index. “Banning TikTok must be considered in Europe as well,” Margus Tsahkna said on X.The ban even became a hot topic at the Australian Open in Melbourne, where American tennis player Coco Gauff scrawled “RIP TikTok USA” on a courtside camera.”I love TikTok, it’s like an escape… hopefully it comes back,” the world number three told reporters.- Offers for TikTok -A last-minute proposal made Saturday by the highly valued start-up Perplexity AI offered a merger with the US subsidiary of TikTok, a source with knowledge of the deal told AFP.The proposal did not include a price but the source estimated it would cost at least $50 billion.Frank McCourt, the former Los Angeles Dodgers owner, has also made an offer to purchase TikTok’s US activities.Meanwhile, thousands of worried TikTok users turned to Xiaohongshu (“Little Red Book”), a Chinese social media network similar to Instagram, ahead of the suspension. Nicknamed “Red Note” by its American users, it was the most downloaded app on the US Apple Store last week. 

TikTok went dark in the United States on Sunday as millions of dismayed users found themselves barred from the popular app, with President-elect Donald Trump vowing to seek a reprieve.Hours before a law banning the Chinese-owned platform in the name of national security came into effect, TikTok was removed from app stores and told users attempting to log on that under the new legislation “you can’t use TikTok for now.”It said “we are fortunate that President Trump has indicated that he will work with us on a solution to reinstate TikTok once he takes office. Please stay tuned!”Trump, who had previously backed a ban and during his first term in office made moves towards one, posted “Save TikTok!” on his own Truth Social platform early Sunday. The blackout followed a US Supreme Court decision on Friday to uphold the legislation banning the video-sharing platform, unless Chinese owner ByteDance reached a deal to sell it to non-Chinese buyers by Sunday.From teenage dancers to grandmothers sharing cooking tips, TikTok has been embraced for its ability to transform ordinary users into global celebrities when a video goes viral.It also now has a fan in Trump, who since signing an executive order stepping up pressure on ByteDance to sell in 2020 has credited the app with connecting him to younger voters.After discussing TikTok with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Trump told NBC News on Saturday that he could activate a 90-day reprieve after he reclaims the Oval Office on Monday.The law allows a 90-day delay if the White House can show progress toward a viable deal, but ByteDance has flatly refused any sale.Outgoing President Joe Biden’s administration has said it will leave the matter to Trump and that it would not enforce any ban.It is unclear what the incoming president can do to lift the ban unless ByteDance sells, however.”Congress wrote this law to be virtually president-proof,” warned Adam Kovacevich, chief executive of industry trade group Chamber of Progress.- ‘I love TikTok’ -Besides removing TikTok from app stores, the law requires Apple and Google to block new downloads, with the companies liable for penalties of up to $5,000 per user if the app is accessed.Oracle, which hosts TikTok’s servers, would also be legally obligated to enforce the ban.Other social media platforms such as X were flooded with memes and comments mourning the move early Sunday — though some posts were more cynical, with many pointing to Trump’s own previous efforts to ban TikTok. “Nothing is more American than banning TikTok before AR-15s,” posted X user David Leavitt, referring to an automatic weapon often used in US mass shootings. In Europe, TikTok’s suspension drew praise from the foreign minister of Estonia — among the countries most resilient to disinformation, according to the European Media Literacy Index. “Banning TikTok must be considered in Europe as well,” Margus Tsahkna said on X, adding that the US banned app has been used to spread disinformation and manipulate elections, and is known to pose a national security risk. The ban even became a hot topic at the Australian Open tennis in Melbourne, where American player Coco Gauff scrawled “RIP TikTok USA” on a courtside camera.”I could not access it after my match,” Gauff said after winning her fourth-round match.”I love TikTok, it’s like an escape… hopefully it comes back,” the world number three told reporters.- Offers for TikTok -A last-minute proposal made Saturday by the highly valued start-up Perplexity AI offered a merger with the US subsidiary of TikTok, a source with knowledge of the deal told AFP.The proposal did not include a price but the source estimated it would cost at least $50 billion.Frank McCourt, the former Los Angeles Dodgers owner, has also made an offer to purchase TikTok’s US activity.Meanwhile, thousands of worried TikTok users turned to Xiaohongshu (“Little Red Book”), a Chinese social media network similar to Instagram, ahead of the suspension. Nicknamed “Red Note” by its American users, it was the most downloaded app on the US Apple Store last week. 

Joe Biden will travel to South Carolina on Sunday, his last full day as US president, where he will mark a national holiday honoring civil rights icon Martin Luther King Jr.Biden will visit Royal Missionary Baptist Church in Charleston, where he will attend services and speak about “the continued fight to make Dr King’s dream a reality,” a White House official said.He will also attend an event at the city’s International African American Museum.Monday is a national holiday in the United States honoring King, the Nobel Peace Prize winner who advocated for the use of non-violent resistance in the fight for equal rights for Black Americans. He was assassinated in 1968.Monday is also the day Donald Trump will be sworn in to succeed Biden as president. The White House said Biden’s “last official trip as president… will continue his long relationship with the state of South Carolina.”The state was pivotal in Biden’s path to securing the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination in 2020. After lackluster showings in the initial nomination contests, Biden won a convincing victory in South Carolina’s primary, an affirmation that he retained significant backing among Black voters. Charleston is also the home of the historic Mother Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church, where a white shooter killed nine Black worshippers in 2015. Biden attended the funeral for Emanuel AME’s pastor, Clementa Pinckney, following the mass shooting perpetrated by a white gunman who had written a racist manifesto before the killings. In a 2024 address at Emanuel AME, Biden said he would not have been elected president without the support of the congregation and “the Black community of South Carolina.”

A clandestine tunnel discovered on the US-Mexico border allowing entry from Ciudad Juarez into the Texan city of El Paso will be sealed by Mexican authorities, an army official said Saturday, adding that its construction was under investigation.Discovered on January 10 by US and Mexican security agencies, the tunnel measures approximately 300 meters (1,000 feet) in length on the Mexican side and is equipped with lighting, ventilation and is reinforced to prevent collapses.Hidden in a storm sewer system operating between both cities, its access is about 1.8 meters high and 1.2 meters wide (6 feet high and 4 feet wide), making for easy passage of people or contraband, said General Jose Lemus, commander of Ciudad Juarez’s military garrison, which is guarding the tunnel.The tunnel’s construction “must have taken a long time… it could have been one or two years,” Lemus told reporters, declining to give details about how long it had been operating as well as its possible builders and operators.He said the Mexican Attorney General’s Office was responsible for the investigation and would be in charge of determining if there was complicity by the authorities due to the fact that it was built without them noticing.Lemus also said clues about the tunnel’s existence and location were discussed by human traffickers on social media platforms like TikTok.Ahead of the US presidential inauguration of Donald Trump on Monday, both sides of the US-Mexico border have reinforced security measures, as the returning Republican has vowed a massive deportation of migrants soon after he takes office. In the state of Chihuahua, which includes Ciudad Juarez, authorities reported a fire in a temporary camp for undocumented migrants, which led to the evacuation of 39 adults and 17 minors, according to the state police.According to the Mexican newspaper Reforma, the fire was started by some of the migrants who were camping there to resist attempts by immigration authorities to detain them and transfer them to Mexico City for later deportation.The National Institute of Migration did not respond to AFP’s requests for comment. 

TikTok disconnected access to its users in the United States late Saturday shortly before a national ban on the app was to take effect, with President-elect Donald Trump unable to intervene until he takes office.”A law banning TikTok has been enacted in the US,” said a message to users attempting to use the app. “Unfortunately, that means you can’t use TikTok for now.” “We are fortunate that President Trump has indicated that he will work with us on a solution to reinstate TikTok once he takes office,” the message added. “Please stay tuned!”After months of legal tussles, the US Supreme Court on Friday upheld a law that would ban the popular video-sharing platform in the name of national security, unless its Chinese owners reach a deal to sell it to non-Chinese buyers by Sunday.From teenage dancers to grandmothers sharing cooking tips, TikTok has been embraced for its ability to transform ordinary users into global celebrities when a video goes viral.It also has a fan in Trump, who has credited the app with connecting him to younger voters, contributing to his election victory in November.After discussing TikTok with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Trump told NBC News on Saturday that he could activate a 90-day reprieve after he reclaims the Oval Office.”I think that would be, certainly, an option that we look at. The 90-day extension is something that will be most likely done, because it’s appropriate,” he said, ahead of Monday’s inauguration.”If I decide to do that, I’ll probably announce it on Monday.”The law allows a 90-day delay if the White House can show progress toward a viable deal, but TikTok owner ByteDance has flatly refused any sale.The administration of outgoing President Joe Biden has said it will leave the matter to Trump, and White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre qualified TikTok’s latest statements as a “stunt.”After the court defeat, TikTok CEO Shou Chew appealed to Trump, thanking him for his “commitment to work with us to find a solution.”Trump “truly understands our platform,” he added.Chew is also set to attend Trump’s inauguration on Monday.The law requires Apple and Google to remove TikTok from their app stores, blocking new downloads. The companies could face penalties of up to $5,000 per user who can access the app.Oracle, which hosts TikTok’s servers, would also be legally obligated to enforce the ban.None of the companies responded to requests for comment on Saturday.- Offers for TikTok -A last-minute proposal made Saturday by the highly-valued start-up Perplexity AI offered a merger with the US subsidiary of TikTok, a source with knowledge of the deal told AFP.That deal could allow parent company ByteDance a possible solution without selling off the app entirely. The plan, first reported by US broadcaster CNBC, would create a new joint venture combining the assets of US TikTok and Perplexity AI, which has been backed by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. The proposal did not include a price for the transaction, but the source estimated it would be at least $50 billion.Frank McCourt, the former Los Angeles Dodgers owner, has also made an offer to purchase TikTok’s US activity and said he’s “ready to work with the company and President Trump to complete a deal.”Canadian investor Kevin O’Leary, who is involved in that offer, told Fox News that ByteDance was offered $20 billion for TikTok’s US operation.He acknowledged the legal uncertainty over the case, with it remaining an open question whether an executive order by Trump to halt the ban would override the law.”Congress wrote this law to be virtually president-proof,” warned Adam Kovacevich, chief executive of industry trade group Chamber of Progress.Sarah Kreps, a professor of government and law at Cornell University, said that “if an executive order conflicts with an existing law, the law takes precedence, and the order can be struck down by the courts.”With TikTok forced into a shutdown, its US-based rivals Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts could reap benefits.Thousands of worried TikTok users have protectively turned to Xiaohongshu (“Little Red Book”), a Chinese social media network similar to Instagram. Nicknamed “Red Note” by its American users, it was the most downloaded app on the US Apple Store this week.