These are the headlines you Need 2 Know for Thursday, February 20, 2020:
  • DEMS DEBATE: Democrats debated in Nevada Wednesday night, marking former NYC Mayor Mike Bloomberg's first appearance on the stage. The billionaire candidate received a rough hazing after his late arrival, including a tense exchange with Sen. Elizabeth Warren over his nondisclosure agreements with several female employees. The debate was the most lively, and tense, of the campaign, as the contenders took turns going after Bloomberg for his record on stop and frisk, former Republican affiliations, and billionaire status. NPR
  • STONE AWAITS HIS FATE: Political lobbyist and former Trump campaign adviser Roger Stone is expected to be sentenced on Thursday. Controversy has been swirling after the president personally called for a more lenient sentence and DOJ top brass overruled the agency’s own prosecutors on the sentencing recommendation. Stone was convicted in November on seven counts of lying to Congress and witness tampering during the Mueller investigation. The Hill
  • R.I.P. POP SMOKE: Tributes are pouring in for rapper Pop Smoke who was killed by masked gunmen who stormed his house in Hollywood Hills early Wednesday morning. Music royalty like Nicki Minaj, 50 Cent, and Chance the Rapper were among those remembering the up-and-coming Brooklyn native. TMZ
  • NASCAR RACER OUT OF HOSPITAL: Race car driver Ryan Newman walked out of the hospital just two days after a dramatic, fiery crash near the end of the Daytona 500. Roush Fenway Racing tweeted a photo showing Newman stepping out of the facility while holding the hands of his two young daughters. Twitter
  • LEFTOVERS: MOLDY WHOPPERS: Burger King had a Whopper its way – decomposing in a 45-second time-lapsed ad meant to prove a point. The chain was illustrating its hamburger's lack of "artificial preservatives" in an apparent dig at its competitor McDonald's, whose sandwiches have routinely been featured as remaining virtually untouched by mold. The commercial, simply titled "The Moldy Whopper" shows the ravages of decomposition over a 34-day period on the once appetizing looking burger. Vice
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