Mar 16, 2017

More than 600 companies want to build Trump's wall

Christian Torres / AP

More than 600 businesses are bidding to build President Trump's border wall — including one from Mexico — reports CNBC. Most of the companies submitting their design concepts are based in California and Texas. Maine and Vermont are the only two states that didn't have any businesses apply.

Customs and Border Patrol has also extended the deadline for these initial applications several times, noting that "industry interest has been high."

Note: CBP is expected to release two formal requests for a proposal soon: one which will focus on a concrete wall and another for other types of barriers. The Federal Budget, released this morning, calls for $1.5 billion to be allocated to the wall in FY17, and $2.6 billion in FY18.

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Ina Fried

5 hours ago - Technology

TikTok to pull out of Hong Kong

Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios

TikTok said Monday night that it would pull its social video platform out of the Google and Apple app stores in Hong Kong amid a restrictive new law that went into effect last week.

Why it matters: TikTok's move comes as many large tech companies say they are still evaluating how to respond to the Hong Kong law.

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Dave Lawler

7 hours ago - World

Ethiopia's Nobel Peace laureate cracks down on ethnic violence

The image of a Nobel Peace laureate in military fatigues encapsulates the moment in which Ethiopia finds itself — on the verge of a transition to democracy, a descent into violence or, perhaps, a precarious combination of the two.

Driving the news: At least 166 people were killed after an iconic musician, Haacaaluu Hundeessaa, was murdered last Monday in Addis Ababa, the capital. Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed responded to the violence by sending in troops and shutting off the internet. High-profile opposition leaders were arrested, along with some 2,300 others.

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Orion Rummler

Updated 9 hours ago - Health

Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms tests positive for coronavirus

Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms said on Monday that she has tested positive for the coronavirus after displaying no symptoms.

Why it matters: Bottoms, one of several Black women on the shortlist to be Joe Biden's running mate, has risen to national prominence in recent months as part of mass protests over racism and police brutality — driven in part by the killing of Rayshard Brooks by Atlanta police.