A group of WeChat users have filed a lawsuit in San Francisco in an effort to stop the executive order that President Trump signed banning WeChat arguing that the executive order isn’t constitutional:
The lawsuit, filed by Chinese-American lawyers forming the U.S. WeChat Users Alliance, claims that Trump’s “vaguely worded” order is unconstitutional and violates rights to free speech, Bloomberg reported.
The lawyers called out Trump’s order for not defining what transactions with WeChat will be prohibited, leaving U.S. companies unsure whether they need to make fundamental changes to their operations, as well as for not providing concrete evidence on how the messaging app is a threat to national security.
The thing is, that the Trump administration is aware that a WeChat ban could have a devastating effect on US business:
The Trump administration, however, is said to be reaching out to U.S. companies in private, to clarify that they will still be able to do business with WeChat in China, according to a separate Bloomberg report, citing sources familiar with the matter.
The administration has realized that an all-out ban against WeChat may have a devastating effect on U.S. industries such as technology, gaming, retail, and telecommunications, according to the sources. Apple is one of the companies that may be significantly affected by Trump’s order, as China accounts for about 20% of total iPhone shipments.
So if they’re aware of how devastating that this could be, why is the Trump administration pressing ahead? I think that Trump needs to show that he’s tough on China in an election year where he is trailing badly in the polls. And this along with the TikTok ban is the way he’s going to do that. Misguided as it may be.
My prediction: When this lawsuit and the one that is sure to come from TikTok hits the courts, Trump will lose. Badly. But IANAL