Prior to his conviction last week, former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort's legal defense team discussed a potential plea deal with prosecutors in the hopes of avoiding a second trial, but the negotiations failed, the Wall Street Journal's Aruna Viswanatha reports.
Why it matters: President Trump praised Manafort following his guilty verdict, calling him a "brave man" for not caving into pressure to make a deal — unlike Trump's former personal lawyer Michael Cohen, who pleaded guilty to his charges.