THE BIG STORY

A group of people lined up and shouted at each other

Last night’s presidential debate was less “debate” and more “Mad Max: Fury Road, but with Democrats who are sick of each other’s bullshit.”

“Occasionally, in life, you can reach a point where you can no longer tolerate the sound of human voices,” wrote Katherine Miller in the aftermath. Perhaps the only good news about the Democrats came from Florida Senator Marco Rubio: “If they are elected you will get govt controlled internet, energy, schools and health care. And as a bonus, reefer for everyone!”

There was a lot of yelling, and crosstalk, and moderators who didn’t seem quite able to hold it all together. “Debate pros at other TV networks are exchanging messages calling this a ‘disaster,’ a ‘nightmare’ and worse,” tweeted CNN Reliable Sources host Brian Stelter.

This was the last debate before the South Carolina primary, happening on Saturday, and the 14 primaries all happening on Super Tuesday next week. We could very well know who the Democratic nominee is by next Wednesday.

AP Photo/Patrick Semansky

STAYING ON TOP OF THIS

Duffy speaks out

Duffy, the singer who is best known for her 2008 hit "Mercy," explained her lengthy break from the music industry yesterday, revealing harrowing details of an assault that led to her exit from public life.

"Many of you wonder what happened to me, where did I disappear to and why," she wrote on Instagram. "The truth is, and please trust me I am ok and safe now, I was raped and drugged and held captive over some days."

She recently told her story to a reporter, she said, and will share her interview in the coming weeks.

SNAPSHOTS

Juul is forcing out two of its top executives and cutting back its Singapore office. It’s part of an attempt by the struggling company to slash $1 billion in costs.

Body camera video released this week shows police in Orlando arresting a six-year old girl. The police department apologized, and the officer was fired.

The Supreme Court ruled in the case of a border patrol officer who shot and killed a Mexican child on the other side of the border. The family of Sergio Adrian Hernandez Guereca cannot sue, the court ruled.

Outdoor Voices founder Tyler Haney is leaving the company. Days ago she was ousted as CEO, yesterday she told staff “with heartbreak, I have tendered my resignation.”

Guadalupe Guereca, mother of late teenager Sergio Hernandez (Stringer Mexico / Reuters)

IT'S COMING

The CDC says get ready for coronavirus in America

The coronavirus outbreak is still concentrated in China but it has been spreading around the world, and it’s looking more and more likely that it will hit the United States. Schools and businesses should be getting ready for the disruptions that could come from a coronavirus outbreak here, federal officials said yesterday.

“You should ask your children’s schools about their plans for school dismissals or school closures. Ask about plans for teleschool,” a CDC director said during a press briefing. “I contacted my local school superintendent this morning with exactly those questions.”

Iran has emerged as a major flashpoint for the outbreak. Yesterday the country’s Deputy Minister of Health announced he had tested positive for the virus, a day after appearing visibly ill at a news conference.

HOT POCKET HEIRESS

We’ve reached the molten core of the college admissions scandal

Michelle Janavs, heir to the Hot Pockets fortune, was sentenced to five months in prison and a $250,000 fine over her role in the college admissions scandal. Last October, Janavs pled guilty to paying $300,000 to help her daughters cheat on college entrance exams and secure one of them a place at the University of Southern California.

So far Desperate Housewives actor Felicity Huffman has been the highest profile person caught up in the scandal, which involved rich people paying bribes to get their kids into elite universities.

But now we have actual microwave food royalty. Janavs is a scion of the family that founded Chef America, the company that invented the Hot Pocket. In 2012 they sold the business to Nestlé for $2.6 billion.

You’ll be the winner of every debate today,

Tom