Nightly Brief

Top CNS stories for today including a federal judge tacked another three and a half years onto the federal prison sentence awaiting former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort; New York’s top prosecutor indicted Manafort less than an hour after his prison sentence was lengthened; Britain’s Parliament voted against leaving the European Union without a deal, and more.

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National

This courtroom sketch depicts former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort, center in a wheelchair, during his sentencing hearing in federal court before judge T.S. Ellis III in Alexandria, Va., Thursday, March 7, 2019. Manafort was sentenced to nearly four years in prison for tax and bank fraud related to his work advising Ukrainian politicians, a significant break from sentencing guidelines that called for a 20-year prison term. (Dana Verkouteren via AP)

1.) Rejecting pleas from Paul Manafort about his remorse, a federal judge tacked another three and a half years Wednesday onto the federal prison sentence awaiting the former Trump campaign chair.

Paul Manafort leaves the federal courthouse in Washington on Feb. 14, 2018. The trial of President Donald Trump’s former campaign chairman will open this week with tales of lavish spending on properties and clothing and allegations that the political consultant laundered money through offshore bank accounts. What’s likely to be missing: answers about whether the Trump campaign colluded with Russia during the 2016 presidential election. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, File)

2.) New York’s top prosecutor indicted Manafort on Wednesday afternoon, less than an hour after a federal judge lengthened his prison sentence.

Michael Cohen, President Donald Trump's former personal lawyer, becomes emotional as he finishes a day of testimony to the House Oversight and Reform Committee, on Capitol Hill in Washington, on Feb. 27, 2019. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

3.) Tackling reports that Michael Cohen lied to Congress again, an attorney for President Donald Trump’s former fixer assured lawmakers that Cohen never acted on his curiosity of seeking a pardon.

The moon is seen during a complete lunar eclipse over Jakarta, Indonesia, on Aug. 28, 2018. Skywatchers around much of the world are looking forward to a complete lunar eclipse that will be the longest this century. (AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana)

4.) It’s been a decade since water was first discovered trapped in ice on the moon and the head of NASA told a Senate committee Wednesday that discovery will soon become just one of many things enticing space tourists of the future.

Regional

5.) Witness testimony wrapped up Wednesday afternoon to conclude an eight-day bench trial that will determine the constitutionality of Ohio’s electoral map, which critics say gives Republicans a clear advantage in congressional races after districts were redrawn following the 2010 census.

Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

6.) California will close up shop on its death chamber and postpone all executions under an executive order signed Wednesday by Governor Gavin Newsom.

FILE- In this Feb. 20, 2018, file photo, construction workers work in midtown Manhattan in New York. U.S. productivity grew at an annual rate of 0.7 percent in the first three months of 2018, a weak reading but a slight improvement from the previous quarter.(AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)

7.) A construction trade group representing 22,000 employees filed a federal lawsuit challenging the Minneapolis school district’s policy to only grant labor agreements to contractors who use union workers.

International

Demonstrators protest opposite the Houses of Parliament in London, Tuesday, Feb. 26, 2019. British Prime Minister Theresa May bowed to intense political pressure Tuesday and handed control of Brexit to Parliament, telling lawmakers they will get to choose between leaving the European Union on schedule — with or without a divorce deal — and asking the EU to postpone departure day. (AP Photo/Frank Augstein)

8.) Faced with a crippling impasse over Brexit, Britain’s Parliament voted against leaving the European Union without a deal on Wednesday night, striking a blow against an influential group of hardcore Brexit backers.

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