THIS SOUNDS LIKE GOOD NEWS: “The federal deficit is running sharply lower than last year even though spending in August set an all-time high, the government reported Thursday. The Treasury Department said that the deficit through the first 11 months of this budget year totaled $274.4 billion, down 9.8 percent from the same period a year ago. Analysts believe the deficit for all of 2007 will actually be even lower because they are forecasting a sizable surplus in the final month. . . . The administration is projecting that the government’s books will be in surplus by 2012 if Congress follows Bush’s recommendations on spending restraint. However, the Democratic-controlled Congress is pushing for higher spending for the budget year that begins Oct. 1. Bush has pledged to veto spending bills that exceed his requests.”