Mar 22, 2017

Senate proceeds to overturn privacy rules

Jeff Fusco / AP

The Senate is expected to vote Wednesday afternoon to move forward with a resolution to overturn FCC privacy rules for broadband providers like Comcast and AT&T, according to a spokesman for Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.

The FCC's privacy rules require broadband providers to first get permission from their customers before sharing or selling their personal data to advertisers and other third-parties. Republicans in the House and Senate introduced resolutions to overturn those rules, and the vote on the Senate floor tonight officially kicks off debate, led by Republican Sen. Jeff Flake. Democrat Bill Nelson, Senate Commerce Committee ranking member, will help lead the opposition to the rollback effort.

What's next: A vote on the resolution will likely occur Thursday after debate has concluded.

Update: The Senate made it official Wednesday night, voting to start debate on the issue and vote on whether to send it to the House.

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Axios

Coronavirus updates: First case in sub-Saharan Africa confirmed

Data: The Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins, the CDC, and China's Health Ministry. Note: China numbers are for the mainland only and U.S. numbers include repatriated citizens.

Nigeria confirmed its first novel coronavirus case in an Italian who flew to Lagos from Milan — the first known case in sub-Saharan Africa. The World Health Organization has been working to prepare Africa's health care systems to be ready for the outbreak, which is now also confirmed in Algeria and Egypt.

The big picture: COVID-19 has killed more than 2,850 people and infected over 83,700 others in some 50 countries and territories. The novel coronavirus is now affecting every continent but Antarctica, and the WHO said Wednesday the number of new cases reported outside China has exceeded those inside the country for the first time.

Go deeperUpdated 2 hours ago - Health

Sara Fischer

Ad spending on 2020 primary tops $1 billion

Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios

Spending on the 2020 presidential primary has officially surpassed the $1 billion mark, with more than half of that total coming from billionaire Michael Bloomberg, according to data from Advertising Analytics.

Why it matters: It's the most money that has been spent this early on in an election cycle in U.S. history.

Go deeper3 hours ago - Politics & Policy

Dion Rabouin

The growing coronavirus recession threat

Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios

In just a matter of weeks, top economists and investment bank analysts have gone from expecting the coronavirus outbreak to have minimal impact on the U.S. economy to warning that an outright recession may be on the horizon.

What's happening: The spread of confirmed coronavirus cases in Europe, the Middle East and the U.S., and the speed at which they are being discovered has set the table for the outbreak to have a larger and much costlier impact.

Go deeper3 hours ago - Economy & Business