President Donald Trump's plan to save TikTok from a US ban faces opposition from Democratic senators, who argue that his approach may not be enough to keep the popular social media app online in the country. In a letter to Trump, Senators Ed Markey (D-MA), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), and Cory Booker (D-NJ) expressed concerns that the President's 75-day extension of the divestment deadline may not be legally binding, leaving TikTok's service providers open to massive liability.

The senators' warning comes as Trump considers two options to keep TikTok running past April 5th: extending the deadline or cutting a deal to bring TikTok into compliance with the law. However, experts say that Trump's plan is legally shaky, and that the ban deadline had technically passed by the time he was sworn into office. The law has an extension mechanism that the president can employ to extend the deadline 90 days if a sale is underway, but neither Trump nor his predecessor, Joe Biden, attempted to use it.

Instead, Trump signed an executive order on his first day back in office, promising not to enforce the ban for 75 days. However, this move has been criticized as "unlawful" by the Democratic senators, who argue that it relies on the "risk tolerance" of TikTok's service providers. Some providers, like Oracle, have been willing to trust Trump's promise of legal safety, while others, like Apple and Google, have held off on returning TikTok to their app stores until receiving assurances from the Attorney General that the law wouldn't be enforced against them.

The senators propose an alternative approach, urging Trump to work with Congress to pass the "Extend the TikTok Deadline Act," which would give the company until October to complete a sale. If Trump is set on moving forward with an Oracle partnership instead of a full sale, the lawmakers suggest that he work with Congress to modify the original law to ensure TikTok can still legally operate. "The path to saving TikTok should run through Capitol Hill," they write.

The controversy surrounding TikTok's future in the US highlights the ongoing tensions between the US government and Chinese tech companies. The ban on TikTok was originally passed by Congress in an overwhelming vote last year, citing concerns about national security and data privacy. However, Trump's attempts to save the app have been met with skepticism from lawmakers, who argue that any deal must meet strict requirements to ensure the app's independence from its Chinese parent company, ByteDance.

As the April 5th deadline approaches, the fate of TikTok in the US remains uncertain. While Trump's administration continues to explore options to keep the app online, the Democratic senators' warning serves as a reminder that any solution must be grounded in law and respect for the concerns of lawmakers and the American people.