Nightly Brief

Top CNS stories for today including the House of Representatives brought President Donald Trump one step closer to facing impeachment Thursday as lawmakers voted in favor of a resolution that outlines precisely how the inquiry will unfold in the coming weeks and months; Wildfires driven by strong Santa Ana winds raged across Southern California for a fourth day; A German court shot down a lawsuit brought by three farming families accusing the government of not doing enough to halt climate change, and more.

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National

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., talks to reporters just before the House vote on a resolution to formalize the impeachment investigation of President Donald Trump, in Washington, Thursday, Oct. 31, 2019. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

1.) The House of Representatives brought President Donald Trump one step closer to facing impeachment Thursday as lawmakers voted 232-196, split on party lines, in favor of a resolution that outlines precisely how the impeachment inquiry will unfold in the coming weeks and months.

2.) While delaying votes on two contentious nominees to federal appeals courts, the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday approved a nominee to a federal court in Missouri with a history of handling anti-abortion litigation in court.

Former Vice President Joe Biden meets with supporters on Aug. 9, 2019, before speaking at the Iowa Democratic Wing Ding at the Surf Ballroom, in Clear Lake, Iowa. (AP Photo/John Locher)

3.) Former Vice President Joe Biden holds a significant lead over his 2020 Democratic rivals in Pennsylvania, according to a poll published Thursday.

Regional

4.) The Texas Democratic Party asked a federal judge to block a new state law it says Republicans passed with the goal of disenfranchising thousands of college students by placing restrictions on early voting.

FILE - In this June 21, 2019 file photo, an anti-abortion advocate attempts to solicit a motorist entering the parking lot of the Planned Parenthood of the St. Louis Region and Southwest Missouri, the state's last operating abortion clinic in St. Louis. A Missouri judge says the state’s lone abortion clinic can continue performing abortions, at least in the near future.St. Louis Circuit Judge Michael Stelzer on Monday, June 24, 2019, ruled to extend a preliminary injunction he previously issued to allow a Planned Parenthood clinic in St. Louis to continue performing abortions through June 28. (Christian Gooden/St. Louis Post-Dispatch via AP File)

5.) The closely watched hearing to decide whether Missouri’s sole abortion clinic can keep its license wrapped up Thursday with the emotional testimony of the clinic’s director of surgical services.

A firefighter puts out hot spots in a damaged home in San Bernardino, California, Oct. 31, 2019. Strong winds drove the Hillside Fire through the residential neighborhood. (Nathan Solis / CNS)

6.) Wildfires driven by strong Santa Ana winds raged across Southern California for a fourth day, with a new blaze breaking out early Thursday that destroyed several foothill homes in the city of San Bernardino.

International

7.) The Greek government cannot require parents to declare they are not Orthodox Christians to exempt their children from religious studies, the European Court of Human Rights ruled Thursday.

Activists of the environment protection organisation 'Greenpeace' take part in a protest rally in front of the administrative court in Berlin, Germany, Thursday, Oct. 31, 2019. Three German farming families are taking Chancellor Angela Merkel to court, arguing that her government isn't doing enough to tackle climate change. The lawsuit that will be heard Thursday is the first attempt in Germany to hold authorities legally accountable for pledges they have made to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Slogan reads: 'You are sueing for everybody - we stay next to you'. (AP Photo/Michael Sohn)

8.) In a blow to environmental activists, a German court on Thursday shot down a lawsuit brought by three farming families accusing the government of not doing enough to halt climate change and protect their farms.

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