Axios

The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals blocked Mississippi's six-week abortion ban on Thursday, indicating the three-judge panel finds the law unconstitutional.

The state of play: The ruling upholds a lower court's May 2019 decision. The Fifth Circuit struck down a 15-week abortion ban in December passed in Mississippi last year.

Both Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders raised more than $2.5 million after their Wednesday evening debate stage performances, the largest post-debate haul of the cycle, according to their campaigns.

Why it matters: The Democrats targeted first-time debater Mike Bloomberg, attacking his campaign spending, past comments about women and people of color, and non-disclosure agreements with former employees.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren is relaxing her stance against super PACs after a group of progressive women formed Persist PAC to air pro-Warren ads ahead of Saturday's Nevada caucuses.

What they're saying: Warren on Thursday said of her new PAC's support: "If all the candidates want to get rid of super PACs, count me in. I'll lead the charge. But that's how it has to be. It can't be the case that a bunch of people keep them and only one or two don’t."

Longtime Trump associate Roger Stone was sentenced Thursday to 4o months in prison for crimes that include obstruction of justice, lying to Congress and witness tampering.

Why it matters: Stone is the seventh person to be convicted and sentenced for crimes unearthed by former special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation. His case has been at the heart of ongoing tensions between President Trump and his Justice Department.

Mike Bloomberg's first debate appearance drove ratings to a record-high Wednesday night, according to Nielsen ratings provided by NBC News. The debate averaged nearly 20 million live TV viewers across NBC, MSNBC and Telemundo, according to preliminary numbers.

Why it matters: Bloomberg's highly anticipated debate debut drew contentious zingers from opponents who were eager to spar with him on stage for the first time.

Michael Bloomberg's campaign spent over $220 million in January alone, according to Federal Election Commission documents filed Thursday.

Why it matters: With a $65 billion net worth, it's a drop in the bucket for the businessman and former mayor of New York. Even still, the cash Bloomberg has spent so far has been enough to propel him to the top of the crowded Democratic field in national polls.

Federal prosecutors in Michigan have charged Brittan Atkinson for allegedly sending a threatening email to Mark Zaid, an attorney for the Ukraine whistleblower whose complaint launched the impeachment inquiry into President Trump, Politico reports.

Why it matters: Trump and his allies have rallied against the whistleblower, demanding their identity be made public — a call often fueled by right-wing media outlets, which have repeatedly amplified the whistleblower's alleged name.

Donald Trump loves Wall Street shenanigans. Companies owned by him have declared bankruptcy six different times, and he was once sued alongside Mike Milken for participating in a scheme to artificially inflate junk-bond prices.

Driving the news: Trump pardoned Milken this week, with an official statement positively gushing over Milken's role in developing the wilder side of fixed-income capital markets.

Longtime Trump associate Roger Stone was sentenced to 4o months in prison for crimes that include obstruction of justice, lying to Congress and witness tampering.

Why it matters: Stone is the seventh person to be convicted and sentenced for crimes unearthed by former special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation. His case has been at the heart of ongoing tensions between President Trump and his Justice Department.

The Wall Street Journal reported that Mike Bloomberg’s campaign is hiring people to regularly post from their personal social-media accounts and send texts in support of Bloomberg to their contacts. Pro Rata producer Naomi Shavin is joined by Axios media reporter Sara Fischer to discuss the campaign’s social media strategies and how platforms are responding.

Go deeper: Read the Wall Street Journal report

Sen. Elizabeth Warren purchased a full-page ad in Thursday's edition of the Las Vegas Review-Journal to tell the paper's billionaire owner, GOP mega-donor Sheldon Adelson, how much he would pay under her proposed wealth tax, per The Nevada Independent's Jon Ralston.

Why it matters: The ad appeared in the paper the day after Warren challenged another billionaire — former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg — on the debate stage. The ad buy also comes days before the Nevada caucuses.

In a speech at the Oxford Union on Wednesday, acting White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney acknowledged it's hypocritical of the Republican Party to criticize deficits under the Obama administration and ignore them under President Trump, the Washington Post reports.

Why it matters: The deficit has ballooned under the Trump administration and is expected to surpass $1 trillion in 2020, despite Trump's promise on the 2016 campaign trail to eliminate the national debt in eight years.

Ross LaJeunesse, the former Google executive running for a Senate seat in Maine as a Democrat, is laying out his plan for regulating tech.

Why it matters: The former Google executive made headlines earlier this year when he detailed his exit from the company. Now he is hoping to parlay his tech know-how into a Senate seat.

Deputy national security adviser Victoria Coates will be reassigned as a senior adviser to Energy Secretary Dan Brouillette, the National Security Council said Thursday — and a senior White House official said that the administration "rejects" the rumors that she is "Anonymous."

Why it matters: Coates has battled claims that she is the still-unknown Trump administration official that penned a New York Times op-ed and book critical of President Trump.

Donald Trump changed how to run for president. Next, he changed the Republican Party. Now, he’s changing the presidency and the boundaries of executive power. 

In the past week, Trump has purged internal dissenters, imported loyalists, pardoned political and financial criminals and continued a running commentary on live Justice Department criminal cases — despite an unprecedented public brushback from his attorney general.

Mike Bloomberg was booed during his debut debate as a Democratic presidential candidate — indicative of a rusty outing where the former New York mayor looked unprepared to respond to obvious lines of attack.

Why it matters ... The debate underscored the Bloomberg’s campaign biggest fear: It's hard to hide to his prickly demeanor. Bloomberg had all the time, practice and forewarning money could buy — and still struggled mightily on the public stage. 

Elizabeth Warren is getting an endorsement from an influential activist group for black communities.

The state of play: Black to the Future Action Fund, a think tank and political organizing group, was formed by Black Lives Matter co-founder Alicia Garza. This is their first endorsement of a presidential candidate, though they've endorsed down-ballot Democrats like Stacey Abrams and Lucy McBath.

The most striking thing about Jeff Bezos' new climate philanthropy is the size. A close second is the information void about what it will actually do.

Catch up fast: The Amazon founder on Monday announced a $10 billion fund to help scientists, nonprofits and activists — and then dropped the mic.

Stories about Michael Bloomberg last week generated 9.4 million interactions on social media — more than twice his previous high. Still, he's getting lapped by Bernie Sanders, according to data from NewsWhip provided exclusively to Axios.

Why it matters: This was the point when Bloomberg converted massive spending into significant organic interest in his campaign, but it may be no match for the Sanders grassroots army.

Over 1,000 military veterans have signed a letter criticizing President Trump for his "actions and insults" toward Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, which they say show he's "prioritized a personal vendetta over our national security."

Why it matters: Vindman was a key national security official until he was fired this month. He testified at the House impeachment inquiry that Trump's July 25 call with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky, which he listened in on, was "improper." Among his criticisms of the Purple Heart recipient, Trump said Vindman was "insubordinate" and had "problems with judgement, adhering to the chain of command and leaking information."

George Zimmerman filed a lawsuit in Polk County, Florida., seeking $265 million in damages from Democratic presidential candidates Pete Buttigieg and Elizabeth Warren, accusing them of defaming him to "garner votes in the black community."

Context: Neither the Massachusetts senator nor the former Southbend mayor tweeted his name in the Feb. 5 posts on what would've been the 25th birthday of Trayvon Martin, the unarmed black teen Zimmerman fatally shot in 2012. But Zimmerman alleges they "acted with actual malice" to defame him.

The relative civility of the last eight Democratic debates was thrown by the wayside Wednesday night, the first debate to feature the billionaire "boogeyman," Michael Bloomberg, whose massive advertising buys and polling surge have drawn the ire of the entire field.

The big picture: Pete Buttigieg captured the state of the race early on, noting that after Super Tuesday, the "two most polarizing figures on this stage" — Bloomberg and democratic socialist Bernie Sanders — could be the only ones left competing for the nomination. The rest of candidates fought to stop that momentum.

Former South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg went after Sen. Amy Klobuchar on the debate stage Wednesday for voting to confirm Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Kevin McAleenan and voting in 2007 to make English the national language.

What she's saying: "I wish everyone was as perfect as you, Pete, but let me tell you what it's like to be in the arena. ... I did not one bit agree with these draconian policies to separate kids from their parents, and in my first 100 days, I would immediately change that."

Billionaire Michael Bloomberg defended his wealth to his Democratic competitors in his debate debut, while Sen. Bernie Sanders, a front-runner, faced comparisons to President Trump over his populist appeals, at the ninth Democratic debate in Las Vegas Wednesday just days before the Nevada caucuses.

The big picture: Sanders argued that Bloomberg's version of centrism won't produce the voter turnout needed to beat Trump. Bloomberg retorted that he doesn't think there's "any chance, whatsoever" of Sanders beating Trump and struck at the senator's Medicare for All plan.

Sen. Bernie Sanders again defended on Wednesday's debate stage his embrace of Democratic socialism.

What he's saying: "Let's talk about Democratic socialism — not communism, Mr. Bloomberg, that's a cheap shot. Let's talk about what goes on in countries like Denmark, where Pete correctly pointed out, they have a much higher quality of life in many respects than we do."

Sen. Elizabeth Warren accused former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg on Wednesday's debate stage of signing "who knows how many" non-disclosure agreements with his female employees over sexual harassment and gender discrimination.

What she's saying: "Mr. Mayor, are you willing to release all of those women from those non-disclosure agreements, so we can hear their side of the story?"

Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar targeted Michael Bloomberg for not releasing his tax returns, comparing the former New York mayor's reluctance to President Trump's court battle over releasing his returns.

What she's saying: "I don't care how much money anyone has, I think it's great you got a lot of money, but I think you've got to come forward with your tax returns," Klobuchar said, reminding the audience that Trump "has been hiding behind his tax returns."

Sen. Elizabeth at Wednesday's Democratic debate painted New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg as the same kind of racist and sexist that Democrats have repeatedly accused President Trump of being.

What she's saying: "I'd like to talk about who we're running against. We're talking about a billionaire who calls women fat broads and horse-faced lesbians. And no, I'm not talking about Donald Trump, I'm talking about Mayor Bloomberg."

Facebook says that paid political campaign staffers are allowed to post content supporting the candidate they work for, so long as those employees "make an effort" to disclose their ties to the campaign.

Yes, but: Facebook will not take down content posted by a campaign staffer that endorses a candidate they work for if they do not disclose the relationship, a spokesperson tells Axios. That's because there's no clear guidance from regulators about whether or not this type of paid relationship violates campaign finance rules.

President Trump confirmed in a tweet Wednesday night that he will install Richard Grenell, the current U.S. ambassador to Germany and a staunch defender of the president, as the acting director of national intelligence.

Why it matters: The role, which was originally vacated by Dan Coats in August 2019, is one of grave responsibility. As acting DNI, Grenell will be charged with overseeing and integrating the U.S. intelligence community and will advise the president and the National Security Council on intelligence matters that concern national security.

Michael Bloomberg's wealth will fuel rather than shield him from tests and attacks when he makes his Democratic primary debate debut on the stage tonight in Las Vegas.

The state of play: Bernie Sanders is still the front-runner. So the other candidates must weigh which of the two presents a bigger threat to their viability: Sanders, with his combined delegate, polling and grassroots momentum? Or Bloomberg, with his bottomless budget?