Start your Monday smart: Brexit, Manafort, #MyFreedomDay, climate protests

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• White House contenders headline a CNN town hall. Three candidates vying for the 2020 Democratic nomination take questions from CNN journalists at the South by Southwest conference in Austin, Texas. Former US Rep. John Delaney of Maryland, US Rep. Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii and Mayor Pete Buttigieg of South Bend, Indiana, take the stage for an hour each, starting at 7 ET. Viewers without a cable subscription can watch on CNN.com or via CNNgo on mobile devices and connected TVs.

• It's March. That means Madness. College basketball is heating up as 32 conferences hold tournaments to decide which teams earn automatic bids to the 2019 NCAA tournament. Find schedules, brackets and scores here.

• It's (another) high-stakes week for Brexit. With the United Kingdom due to leave the European Union by month's end, a series of votes could reveal just how messy the exit will be. Tuesday is the deadline for another so-called meaningful vote by Parliament on Prime Minister Theresa May's departure plan. If it fails, a vote on leaving with no deal is expected Wednesday. If that fails, a vote to ask for an extension of EU negotiations would be Thursday.

• Paul Manafort gets sentenced (again). President Donald Trump's ex-campaign chairman heads back to federal court, this time in Washington, where a judge found he broke his plea deal after admitting to conspiracy and witness tampering. He faces 10 years behind bars, on top of the 47 months he got last week in another case.

• An ex-papal adviser gets sentenced. Also due to learn his fate is Cardinal George Pell, who was convicted of child sex offenses in December in Australia. The ex-Vatican treasurer and close adviser to Pope Francis has appealed the convictions.

• A trio of Trump associates are in the hot seat. Three key players close to the President have this date circled in their planners. The man at the center of the proposed Trump Tower project in Moscow, Felix Sater, is set to testify publicly before the House Intelligence Committee. Across town, Trump confidant Roger Stone is due in federal court for a hearing ahead of his trial on charges of lying to Congress, obstructing justice and witness tampering. And Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross is to appear before a House panel to explain his decision to include a citizenship question in the 2020 census.

• #MyFreedomDay raises awareness of modern slavery. Right now, in 2019, 40 million people -- about a quarter of them children -- reportedly are trapped in slavery. Students around the world will draw attention to their plight with film screenings, public discussions and a social media campaign. You can learn more here.

• Will they hit the green on 17? Bryson DeChambeau, Tommy Fleetwood, Jordan Spieth and Tiger Woods take on one of golf's most infamous holes at TPC Sawgrass. Here's when to watch live on the Golf Channel and NBC.

• The climate kids are coming. Students in 24 countries plan to skip school in hopes of forcing the adults around them to face the scary and looming risks of climate change. The platform of the US Youth Climate Strike includes a transition to 100% renewable energy by 2030 and a prohibition on new fossil fuel infrastructure, including pipelines, coal plants and fracking.

• Congress wants Trump-Putin info. It's the deadline for the Trump administration to give detailed information about communications between the US and Russian presidents to Democrats leading investigations by three House committees.

• Information wants to be free. And, thankfully for all us newsies, the law is on its side. Celebrate Freedom of Information Day with this Peter Frampton hit. (Click here to rock out.)

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