Judge blocks Trump administration WeChat ban

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A U.S. judge temporarily blocked the Trump administration’s order to ban WeChat downloads in the U.S., which was set to start Sunday evening.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Laurel Beeler in San Francisco ruled early Sunday that the group of U.S. WeChat users challenging the order raised “serious questions” about how the action would affect their First Amendment rights, Reuters reported.

"The plaintiffs' evidence reflects that WeChat is effectively the only means of communication for many in the community, not only because China bans other apps, but also because Chinese speakers with limited English proficiency have no options other than WeChat," Beeler wrote, according to CNN Business.

She wrote that the order burdens “substantially more speech than is necessary to serve the government’s significant interest in national security, especially given the lack of substitute channels for communication.”

Beeler added that “obvious alternatives” to a ban on downloads of Chinese app across the U.S. exist, including prohibiting the app on government-issued phones.

“Certainly, the government’s overarching national-security interest is significant,” she said. “But on this record — while the government has established that China’s activities raise significant national security concerns — it has put in scant little evidence that its effective ban of WeChat for all U.S. users addresses those concerns.”

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