Ahem. 50 U.S.C. § 1702(b)(3) Specifically Exempts "Information, Or Informational Materials" -- Including "Films.. And Artwork" From Bans.

Before we discuss the likely "arbitrary and capricious" infirmities in Trump's supposed executive "order" -- and before we reach his lack of power to ban constitutional First Amendment expressive activity. . . AND before we consider that he has floated it as a form of unlawful blackmail, on videotape, this week. . . let us consider the savings clause inside the very law he claims to rely on (50 U.S.C. § 1702)¹, in setting a 45 day delayed "prohibition" of certain apps. [Finally of course, as we previously mentioned, it is practically impossible to do, as a technical matter, what he says he is trying to do.]

The section of the US Code that allows the president to act on international emergencies to restrict certain foreign transactions with US persons is -- see page 12 of this primer -- itself expressly circumscribed by Congress, to recognize core free expression values in the First Amendment, thus:

. . . . Amendments in 1988 and 1994 updated this list of protected rights to include the exchange of published information in a variety of formats. . . . As amended, the act currently protects the exchange of “information or informational materials, including but not limited to, publications, films, posters, phonograph records, photographs, microfilms, microfiche, tapes, compact disks, CD ROMs, artworks, and news wire feeds,” provided such exchange is not otherwise controlled for national security or foreign policy reasons related to weapons proliferation or international terrorism. . . .

Tik Tok's primary content is user uploaded (and as here relevant, US protected persons' expressive) short films, recordings, and artwork. This means, in effect, Trump's action is meaningless.

Moreover, it is why his executive order itself says it is limited, to "the extent permitted under applicable law" (i.e., his people know this is all just so much. . . Kabuki theater). Except as a false, lawless international "blackmail" threat -- this, like all things Trump -- arrives. . . impotent. Impotent, except as a minor and doubtful cudgel, to try and force ByteDance to sell its US facing Tik Tok assets to Microsoft or Apple (and perhaps, lawlessly, for him to extract blackmail payments, from US companies). His people once again imagine he has powers he plainly. . . does not possess.

नमस्ते

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^{1. Perhaps uncharitably, it is humorous to me that Trumps' official White House communication, to the Speaker of the US House, is itself a form the rubes did not bother to edit. It leads with two alternative addressees -- but does't delete "Mr. President." These people are so. . . manifestly. . . incompetent. Yikes.}