Midday Roundup: Hundreds of children sick from rare virus

Sick day. An outbreak of severe respiratory illness has sent hundreds of children to hospitals in the Midwest. Health officials believe a rare enterovirus similar to the common cold is responsible, though where it came from or why it is affecting so many children remains unknown. Children younger than 5 or who have asthma face the most danger from the illness, with many of them ending up in pediatric intensive care units to get assistance breathing. Ten states have contacted the CDC for help investigating the outbreak: Colorado, North Carolina, Georgia, Ohio, Iowa, Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Kentucky.

Inside Benghazi. According to a book set to release next week, a CIA base chief delayed the response to the deadly attack on the U.S. diplomatic mission in Benghazi. In the book, five U.S. Special Forces commandos who worked for the CIA describe how they listened to pleas for help from a diplomatic security officer over a radio as their chief told them to stand down. According to The New York Times, which obtained a copy of the book ahead of its release, the commandos protested the orders and eventually defied them. Two members of the team, both former Navy SEALs, died in the fighting.

Timely decision. President Barack Obama has decided to delay executive action on immigration reform until after the November midterm elections. On Meet the Press Sunday, the president denied politics had anything to do with the decision, saying the summer border crisis with tens of thousands of unaccompanied children from Central America clouded the issue for Americans. His decision has angered both sides of the immigration debate. Immigration reform advocates wanted the president to take decisive action, while conservatives accuse Obama of dishonesty on the issue. “President Obama is playing political games to protect his liberal friends in November by using sleight of hand to temporarily hide his radical agenda from the American people,” House Majority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.) said.

On the docket. Arguments over the legal definition of marriage begin today in the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Phoenix. The cases originated in Hawaii, Idaho, and Nevada. The 9th Circuit judges hearing the cases were all appointed by Democratic presidents and are expected to rule quickly in favor of requiring states to allow same-sex marriage.

Lava watch. Homes in a Hawaii subdivision are being threatened by a slow flow of lava from the Big Island’s active volcano. The lava is advancing by about 800 feet per day and is less than a mile from rural residences. Though the slow-moving lava will give residents plenty of warning if they have to evacuate, nothing can be done to stop it from burning up roads, houses, and farmland in the area.

WORLD Radio’s Jim Henry contributed to this report