Taking a small step on immigration

July 25, 2014 - Daily News Briefing

The influx young people from Central America to the US is a complicated, contentious issue. But there may be a way forward.

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A possible tornado swept through a Virginia campground on Thursday, killing at least three people and injuring five, a fire department spokeswoman said.

The storm hit the Cherrystone Campground at Cape Charles, Virginia, overturning three cars and an a tractor-trailer, said Brittney Eder, a spokeswoman for the Eastville Volunteer Fire Company. Reuters

An Air Algerie flight crashed on Thursday en route from Ouagadougou in Burkina Faso to Algiers with 110 passengers on board, an Algerian aviation official said.

There were few clear indications of what might of happened to the aircraft, or whether there were casualties, but Burkino Faso Transport Minister Jean Bertin Ouedrago said it asked to change route because of a storm in the area.

The list of passengers includes 51 French, 27 Burkina Faso nationals, eight Lebanese, six Algerians, five Canadians, four Germans, two Luxemburg nationals, one Swiss, one Belgium, one Egyptian, one Ukrainian, one Nigerian, one Cameroonian and one Malian. The six crew members are Spanish, according to the Spanish pilots' union. AP

With Congress scheduled to recess in a week, the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee's chairman has offered to scale back a Senate-passed bill to improve health care services for veterans.

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I) of Vermont said Thursday that a new proposal to improve veterans' access to health care would cost less than $25 billion over three years. That is $10 billion less than a bill passed by the Senate last month and nearly $20 billion less than a House-backed measure. Both bills allow veterans to go to private doctors to avoid long wait times plaguing Veterans Affairs hospitals and clinics. AP

Iraqi lawmakers elected a veteran Kurdish politician on Thursday to replace long-serving Jalal Talabani as the country's new president in the latest step toward forming a new government. But a series of attacks killed dozens of people and Islamic militants destroyed a Muslim shrine traditionally said to be the burial place of the Prophet Jonah, underscoring the overwhelming challenges facing the divided nation. AP

Recall expenses chopped $1.5 billion from General Motors' bottom line in the second quarter, as it added up the costs of repairs for nearly 30 million cars and set aside funds to compensate victims of small-car crashes.

The automaker, which is in the midst of the largest spate of recalls in its history, posted a net profit of $190 million, or 11 cents per share. A year ago GM made $1.26 billion, or 75 cents per share. Without one-time items GM would have made 58 cents per share, equaling Wall Street's expectations, according to data provider FactSet. AP

Facebook is on a roll. The world's largest online social network posted sharply higher earnings on Wednesday as revenue from mobile advertising continued to grow, and more people used it, more often.

The company's shares climbed nearly 4 percent in extended trading after the results came out, signaling that they could hit a record high when the stock market opens on Thursday. Investors who bought — and held on to — Facebook stock during the company's initial public offering two years ago are now close to doubling their money. AP

“The object of the Monitor is to injure no man, but to bless all mankind.” – Mary Baker Eddy

The Daily News Briefing is published Monday through Friday by The Christian Science Publishing Society in Boston, Massachusetts.