SYRACUSE, N.Y. (NCC News) — President Trump is meeting Wednesday with White House aides and potential investors to deliberate on a final decision concerning access to TikTok in the U.S.
“I don’t think that the ban is gonna go through, though,” said local resident Marquis M. “There’s too many small businesses that run on it, and the people in general support it because it exposes a lot more of what’s going on around the world.”
As the end of the 75-day reprieve issued on January 20 draws near, the meeting is expected to determine if TikTok’s parent company ByteDance is willing to divest ownership. Trump originally set a ban for January 19 out of concern for national security.
“I think there’s a good chance it does [happen],” said a local resident Becca Joy. “Just because all bets are off, and I think it keeps us distracted… I think we have far bigger problems to address.”
Investment firm Blackstone and software company Oracle are among the several investors who will be in attendance at the meeting. If the app is not sold to an approved buyer by April 5, the initial January 19 ban will go back into effect, making TikTok unavailable across the country.