Key US lawmakers wary of TikTok deal Trump administration is preparing

Lawmakers who pressed for the ban on the social media app TikTok expressed doubts about a deal the Trump administration is preparing for outside investors to acquire a half-interest in the Chinese company's US operations.

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House Speaker Mike Johnson said there was "great concern" in Congress about a tentative agreement unveiled this week by senior US and Chinese officials after two days of talks in Madrid.

The company's US business would be acquired by a consortium that includes Oracle Corp, Andreessen Horowitz and private equity firm Silver Lake Management.

"It's a dangerous platform. It has been misused and abused," Mr Johnson said on CNBC on Sept 17. "And I think leaders in Congress have expressed our desire and our insistence that be ceased, and so I hope that the terms of this new arrangement accomplish that desired goal."

Details were sparse and lawmakers were waiting to be briefed on specifics.

Representative John Moolenaar, the Republican chairman of the House Select Committee on China, said the app "is a national security threat that allows a foreign adversary to collect data on Americans and manipulate and control the information they see".