With additional reporting from Ari Hawkins

ABORTION PILL POLITICS — Walgreens, the nation’s second-largest pharmacy chain, is suddenly caught in the crossfire of presidential politics.

After confirming to POLITICO that they will not sell abortion pills in 20-plus states where Republican attorneys general have threatened them with legal action, Walgreens was dragged over the weekend into the 2024 race, where GOP hopefuls are working to prove their anti-abortion bona fides.

Former Vice President Mike Pence lavished praise on the company at Students for Life’s annual gala in Naples, Fla., telling guests that their pressure campaign against “pill mills and mail-order abortions” is working and urging them to “stay in the fight.”

“I commend Walgreens for yielding to the rule of law,” he said. “Americans don’t want their pharmacies to become abortion facilities.”

The pharmacy chain finds itself alone in the spotlight, bearing the brunt of criticism from both sides of the abortion fight as its peers — Albertsons, Costco, CVS, Kroger, Rite Aid and Walmart — have gone radio silent on whether and where they will dispense abortion pills.

Access to the drugs, the most popular method of terminating a pregnancy in the U.S., has become a flashpoint — and Walgreens’ announcement has been met with a mix of praise, criticism, petitions, calls for boycotts, and the ire of the White House.

Many conservatives remain upset that Walgreens is still planning to dispense the pills in many blue and purple states. Over the weekend, Students for Life and other anti-abortion groups picketed outside more than 50 pharmacies around the country, and say they’re looking at different legal strategies they hope will force Walgreens and other retail chains to back away entirely.

“They should not be in the business of selling abortion,” said Katie Glenn, the state policy director for Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America. “We urge all concerned Americans to keep advocating against illegal policies that harm women and children and to vote with their feet and wallets.”

The left isn’t pleased either with Walgreens’ cautious stance — particularly their pledge not to dispense abortion pills in some states where they remain legal, such as Alaska, Iowa, Kansas, and Montana, because of pressure from GOP attorneys general in those states.

“They caved,” California Democratic Attorney General Rob Bonta complained. “For millions of Americans, this is a lifeline, it’s a key to a better future. So I’m disappointed that Walgreens has decided to give in to political pressure and debunked legal theories and cut off access to those medications.”

California has announced it is “reviewing all relationships between Walgreens and the state.”

"We will not pursue business with companies that cave to right wing bullies pushing their extremist agenda or companies that put politics above the health of women and girls,” said Brandon Richards, deputy communications director for Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom.

After POLITICO broke the story of Walgreens’ plans, the Democratic governor and attorney general of Illinois called an emergency meeting with the company, which is headquartered in the state.

Attorney General Kwame Raoul said he was ready to “hammer away at Walgreens” but came away more sympathetic to the bind the home-state company is in.

“They’re in a landscape where they don’t know who the next administration may be,” he explained, saying this uncertainty pushed the company to make a “strategic choice” to only dispense the pills in some states and not to use mail delivery of them anywhere.

“It’s hard to argue against that. They’re acting in their business-first interest,” Raoul said. “If, God forbid, one of these extreme candidates were elected president, they could be subject to not only civil but criminal action.”

The state-level landscape is in flux as well. In Kansas, for instance, abortion remains legal and the law that would bar pharmacies from dispensing the pills is blocked in court, with a hearing set for later in March on whether it can be reinstated. Yet Walgreens opted not to offer the pills at its Kansas locations after Republican Attorney General Kris Kobach threatened to sue the company.

“It’s inaccurate to suggest that women will be denied access to these pills,” Kobach said. “They will still have access, but in a clinic, which is safer in the event of any complications.”

Complications from abortion pills are rare, and experts say that limiting their distribution to doctors’ offices will hamper access in states with rural populations and a shortage of OBGYNs, including Kansas.

Welcome to POLITICO Nightly. Reach out with news, tips and ideas at [email protected]. Or contact tonight’s author at [email protected] or on Twitter at @AliceOllstein.

— Pentagon still probing if a weapon caused ‘Havana Syndrome,’ even after spy agencies found no smoking gun: The Defense Department is continuing to conduct its own research into what the government calls “anomalous health incidents,” including what may have caused them and whether a weapon is responsible, according to five people familiar with the effort. The research into the mysterious ailment referred to as “Havana Syndrome” that has affected more than 1,000 government employees over the past several years is continuing despite an intelligence community assessment released last week that said there was no evidence to support the theory that the incidents were caused by a foreign adversary wielding a weapon.

— DOJ to file suit blocking JetBlue’s takeover of Spirit: The Justice Department is expected to file suit as soon as Tuesday to block JetBlue’s pending $3.8 billion takeover of Spirit Airlines, arguing the deal would eliminate a critical low-cost carrier and raise prices in an already heavily-consolidated industry, according to two people with direct knowledge of the matter.

COASTAL CASH DASH — President Joe Biden is planning to travel to California next week to raise campaign money, according to three sources familiar with his plans. It’s the latest sign that the 80-year-old president is readying another run for the White House.

Biden’s trip west will take him to Rancho Santa Fe, a wealthy enclave of sprawling estates north of San Diego. He also will likely have stops in Los Angeles and Las Vegas.

SPEAK NO EVIL — If any subject is verboten in the early stages of the Republican presidential primary, it’s the events of Jan. 6 — the insurrection that once served as a defining point in 2024 frontrunner Donald Trump’s career, write David Siders and Meridith McGraw.

Whereas Republicans once talked openly about it being disqualifying for the former president, today it is little more than a litmus test in GOP circles of a candidate’s MAGA bona fides.

There’s no mention of Jan. 6 in Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ new book. Mike Pence, the former vice president and likely presidential candidate, is preparing to resist a grand jury subpoena for testimony about Trump’s efforts to overturn the election, seeing only political landmines in testifying. Nikki Haley, asked on a podcast recently if she would describe the riot at the Capitol as an “insurrection, a riot, or a coup,” went instead with a more banal — and safer — description: “a sad day in America.”

THREE QUESTIONS WITH… Frank Luntz, Republican pollster and political consultant, known for his focus group-driven research on policy and messaging.

In your estimation, who is the GOP front runner at this early stage and why?

The national polling clearly has Donald Trump leading every other Republican, but that is misleading. Hillary Clinton had the same overwhelming lead over Barack Obama in 2007-08, but Obama was strong in all the early states — and that’s what really matters. His early wins in Iowa and South Carolina decimated Clinton’s massive campaign advantages, and I think we’re headed to a similar outcome in 2024.

I’m on some Trump campaign email lists, so I get to read him boasting about his national lead multiple times a week. But he never admits that DeSantis has already pulled even or ahead in Iowa and New Hampshire, and DeSantis has a lot lower negatives and much more upside than Trump.

So while I consider Trump the front runner at this moment, I think it is more likely that DeSantis wins the GOP nomination.

What effect might the Trump/DeSantis relationship have on the primary? 

I’m fearful that 2024 will be even more vicious and hostile than 2016. I’m afraid that the tone and rhetoric will set a new low — and that’s not good for America or the American people.

I’m old enough to remember Ronald Reagan’s 11th commandment — thou shall not attack another Republican. Yet that’s all Trump does — attack other Republicans. Hopefully Desantis knows better and will behave better. Republicans lost several Senate seats because their primaries were so ugly and Trump-like.

Let me be even more explicit. The GOP will not win the White House or the Senate if they continue to follow the Trump playbook and tear each other apart.

Which Republican candidate would be most difficult — and easiest — for Biden to run against in the 2024 race?

I’ll give you three candidates that, if nominated, would drive Biden nuts:

Tim Scott would completely throw Biden off his game. Scott would most effectively challenge the Biden social and cultural narrative, not just about race but about the role and function of government in society.

The “Miami Miracle” Mayor, Francis Suarez, has the most compelling track record of results of any candidate. If Florida is an economic home run, Miami is a grand slam.

And there is no better debater on either side of the aisle than Chris Christie. There is no way that Trump (or Biden) would ever take the stage with Christie on it [in 2024]. It would be a slaughter not seen since the Roman Colosseum days.

STRIKE INCOMING — France is bracing for a major showdown tomorrow against President Emmanuel Macron’s flagship pensions reform as the passage of the bitterly-contested bill nears its endgame, writes Giorgio Leali.

Trade unions and left-wing parties have called on workers to “bring France to a standstill,” for what could be the most widespread strike action against the government’s plans to raise the retirement age to 64 from 62.

Strikes are expected to hit sectors including schools, airports, energy plants and refineries, with potentially significant disruptions to public transportation and fuel supply.

Similar calls came from left-wing parties, with the leader of the left-wing France Unbowed movement, Jean-Luc Mélenchon, urging students to “block everything [they] can.” Tuesday’s strikes follow other day-long protests that kicked off in January against the unpopular reform.

The pensions bill is currently being debated in the French Senate, with lawmakers in both chambers of parliament expected to wrap up discussions by the end of March.

The reform is a major test for Macron since losing outright majority in parliament in June last year. During his presidential campaign, the French president vowed to reform France’s state pensions system and bring it in line with European neighbors such as Spain and Germany where the retirement age is 65 to 67 years old.

MAPPING TIKTOK’S TROUBLE — European governments and regulators have taken action against the Chinese-owned social media application TikTok over privacy and security concerns and new restrictions continue to pop up in governments across the bloc. Luckily for us, our colleagues at POLITICO Europe are charting the legislative developments. Take a look at our interactive map here.

CAPTIVE AUDIENCE — The original idea — and promise — of zoos around the world was that they would bring the natural world to population centers. But as zoos evolved through the 20th century, they moved away from capturing animals in natural habitats. Now, most animals at accredited zoos are bred from animals already in captivity. Additionally, many birds that are in zoos have their wings clipped so that they cannot escape. So, when a wild fox managed to make its way into the Smithsonian National Zoo in Washington, D.C., last year (something that occasionally happens, as the zoo abuts a park with multiple wild animals), he found dozens of flamingos in an enclosure unable to escape. Ross Andersen reports for The Atlantic about the history of zoos, their relationship with the wild and what happened when a fox got into the flamingo house.