Midday Roundup: Central American leaders talk border crisis

Immigration summit. The leaders of El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras will meet with President Barack Obama today to troubleshoot the flood of unaccompanied minors from Central America overwhelming the U.S. border. The leaders met Thursday with lawmakers on Capitol Hill who are considering Obama’s requests for emergency funds and additional authority to send unaccompanied children back to their home countries more quickly. Today’s meeting is expected to include a discussion of a possible refugee program for young people from Honduras that would give families an alternative to sending their children on the perilous journey to America.

Get-out-of-Obamacare-free pass. The Department of Health and Human Services has quietly exempted the five U.S. territories from participating in Obamacare. The department announced the decision last Wednesday, Fox News reported. The healthcare law had made a mess of the insurance market in the territories, where insurers were required to meet minimum coverage standards, but residents were not required to buy insurance, nor did they receive subsidies for doing so.

Terror alert. Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., is leading a congressional effort to have Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood designated a terrorist group. Draft legislation released Thursday detailed how the Egypt-based political group that backed ousted President Mohamed Morsi ideologically and financially supports terrorism around the globe. The bill calls on the executive branch to officially name the group a Foreign Terrorist Organization and to levy sanctions against anyone affiliated with it.

Fifty shades of wrong. The anti-porn group Morality in Media (MIM) is urging viewers to steer clear of the upcoming movie Fifty Shades of Grey after the trailer for the film came out Thursday. Executive Director Dawn Hawkins said the trailer deceptively portrays the tale of violent sex between a childhood abuse victim and a willing but naïve virgin as a melodramatic love story. “The popularity of Fifty Shades of Grey among women sends a message to men that this is what women really want,” Hawkins wrote. “Even more dangerous, it also sends the message to women that they can ‘fix’ violent, controlling men by being obedient and loving.”

Stock slump. Amazon’s rapid growth came with a steep price tag this year, and investors are not happy about it. The company’s second-quarter earnings report showed a sales increase of 23 percent compared to last year, accompanied by a net loss of $126 million. High spending on new products such as Amazon’s new smart phone mostly account for the loss, but investors aren’t buying the “you’ve got to spend money to make money” rationale. Amazon’s stock price has fallen by 11 percent since the earnings announcement, according to Bloomberg.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.