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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

In brief: Graham treated for pneumonia

Raleigh, N.C. – Evangelist Billy Graham was alert and resting comfortably Wednesday evening after being admitted to an Asheville, N.C., hospital for the treatment of pneumonia, doctors said.

The 92-year-old Graham arrived Wednesday morning at Mission Hospital after he suffered a health episode overnight that included sweating, coughing and breathing difficulty, Graham spokesman A. Larry Ross told the Associated Press on Wednesday.

Testing suggested he was suffering from pneumonia, and diagnostic tests showed his heart was normal.

Dr. Shaw Henderson, a pulmonologist, said Graham was being treated with antibiotics and was “clinically stable.”

Budget deficit to top $1 trillion

Washington – The government is taking in more tax revenue as the economy improves, but not nearly enough to keep the federal budget deficit from exceeding $1 trillion for a third straight year.

The deficit for April dropped to $40.5 billion, half the imbalance from the same month last year, the Treasury Department said Wednesday.

Still, the deficit is on pace to grow to $1.4 trillion in this budget year, according to the Congressional Budget Office. That would be greater than last year’s $1.29 trillion deficit and nearly match the record $1.41 trillion deficit hit in 2009.

A decade ago, it seemed the federal budget was heading in the opposite direction. The government had a surplus of $127 billion in 2001 when President George W. Bush took office.

But by 2002, the country was back in the red. The deficits grew after Bush won approval for the broad tax cuts, pushed a major drug benefit program for seniors and entered the country into wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

In 2008, Bush’s last full year in office, the deficit had grown to $454.8 billion, a record at the time.

Huckabee seeks others’ prayers

Washington – Potential presidential aspirants usually seek cash before waging a campaign. Mike Huckabee wants your prayers.

To that end, a new website has been launched seeking divine inspiration for the former Arkansas governor, called prayforhuckabee.com.

“As many of you know, I am prayerfully considering an important decision about seeking the office of President in the 2012 election. I am asking for God’s guidance now, and I humbly ask that you would join me in prayer as I seek to discern His will for my life,” Huckabee writes on the page.