Daily Headlines: August 23, 2011 (Updated)

* Caribbean: Hurricane Irene drenched Puerto Rico, Haiti and the Dominican Republic shortly before strengthening into a Category 2 level storm. (Update: Meteorologists prognosticate that Hurricane Irene could reach Category 4 status in the upcoming days).

* Central America: According to several polls ex-general Otto Perez may not be able to avoid a runoff in Guatemala’s presidential elections next month, while Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega could win reelection in November.

* U.S.: A recent poll indicated that President Barack Obama is losing ground with Latino voters.

* Bolivia: About 130 women and girls living in a Mennonite community in Bolivia have come forward and claimed they were drugged and raped.

Online Sources- UPI, New American Media, Americas Quarterly blog, GlobalPost, Miami Herald
Video Source - AP via YouTube ("Hurricane Irene cut power to more than a million people in Puerto Rico, downing trees and flooding streets on Monday, and forecasters warned it could be a major storm as it threatens Florida and South Carolina by the end of the week.")