Addison Rae refuses to thank Trump for reinstating TikTok, claims he "originally created the problem"

Social media personality Addison Rae has refused to praise Donald Trump for reinstating TikTok after it had been banned in the United States for 24 hours on January 19, 2025. The ban was a result of a newly passed law that required China-based company ByteDance to divest from TikTok because of national security issues.

Just a day later, the app was reinstated in the United States and it greeted users with a welcome message that expressed gratitude to the 78-year-old President.

“Welcome back! Thanks for your patience and support. As a result of President Trump’s efforts, TikTok is back in the U.S.! You can continue to create, share and discover all the things you love on TikTok,” said TikTok's welcome message.

Addison Rae rose to fame in 2019 and is currently one of the most followed personalities on TikTok. With over 88 million followers and 5.2 billion likes (at the time of writing), the 24-year-old is the fifth-most followed person on the application.

Rae was recently selected as the cover girl for Vogue France's March 2025 edition. During a recent interview for the magazine (published on February 19, 2025), she spoke about the TikTok banning fiasco and Donald Trump's involvement in the same.

During the interview, she was asked whether she was thankful to the President for supposedly bringing back TikTok within 24 hours of its suspension. She replied:

"No, because he was the one who created the problem in the first place. He was the cause of the blockage. I remember the first time I heard about a possible ban of the app was around 2020. I was worried. Of course, I'm glad the network survived." (translated from French by Google)

Commenting on Donald Trump's rise to power in the United States, she said:

"Things are changing at a crazy speed, it's unbelievable to see how quickly one can abuse a newly acquired power, being disconnected from others, and from the values of one's country. And we have the impression that certain freedoms are being taken away from us little by little, which is very scary."

In the 2024 United States Presidential elections, the 78-year-old defeated Democratic candidate Kamala Harris to become the 47th President of the United States after Joe Biden.

As per a report by the Associated Press, he ended the election with 312 electoral votes, 42 more than the favorable number of 270. Harris, meanwhile, amassed 226 at the end of the counting process.

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When Donald Trump claimed that Microsoft was in talks to acquire TikTok

President of the United States - Image via Getty

In a press interview on January 27, 2025, Donald Trump claimed that tech giant Microsoft was in talks to acquire TikTok. The newly-elected President also explained that he would like to see a bidding war between potential suitors over the app.

This is not the first time Microsoft has been in talks to purchase the social media giant. Back in 2020, i.e., when the President first called for the app to be banned, Microsoft's official corporate blog post reported that Trump and the company's CEO, Satya Nadella, were discussing a potential TikTok purchase. However, the report stated that it was a "preliminary" initiative and not an "assurance."

Microsoft CEO Nadella Awarded With Axel Springer Prize In Berlin - Image via Getty

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In an interview with Air Force One on January 25, 2025, the US President revealed that he was in talks with multiple tycoons over purchasing the app. During the interview, he also implored Tesla CEO Elon Musk and Oracle Corporation Chairman, Larry Ellison to buy TikTok.