Meanwhile, TikTok sale talks stall

The third 90-day TikTok ban delay came last week as conversations between the government and potential suitors have stalled out, sources told Axios.

Why it matters: Patience is wearing thin on Capitol Hill, where Republicans are fed up with the delays, Axios' Maria Curi reports.

⏳ Between the lines: Negotiations between potential bidders and the White House were being led by the vice president's office. But talks slowed ahead of the third ban delay.

• "Things right now are pretty quiet," billionaire Frank McCourt told Axios in an interview last week.
• "There was a period of time where we were in active conversations with the White House and through the vice president's office and the Chinese side of this," he added.
• McCourt, who is leading the People's Bid for TikTok, said the Chinese government has "made it clear that nothing's going to happen here without their sign off, but there's nothing for them to sign off on right now."
• He called this a "chicken and an egg situation."

😵‍💫 Zoom out: U.S. bidders remain eager to strike a deal, but getting the Chinese government's sign-off will require intervention from the U.S. government, which is currently distracted by several other foreign policy obstacles.

• TikTok was once seen as a bargaining chip in broader U.S.-China trade negotiations, but Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told lawmakers earlier this month that's no longer the case, per Curi.