All of our global companies do what China wants to operate there, and what they ask is a lot more onerous than to spin out a separate entity for local operation.

At least the US is trying to protect the privacy of its citizens in this case. The CCP meanwhile required Apple to prevent Airdrop from functioning properly in China in order to stop the spread of information between protest groups.

Then...don't? No one is forcing them to, they just can't do business in the US if that is their choice.

I hope they don't. Then I will finally give a smartphone to my kids.

Nobody is forcing anybody to do anything.

TikTok can decide to not sell, in which case it's banned, or it can sell, in which case it's not.