Clarion-Ledger from Jackson, Mississippi • Page 1

ZD, A GANNETT COMPANY clarionledger.com SATURDAY, OCTOBER 13, 2012 MISSISSIPPI'S INFORMATION SOURCE MISS. CAMPUSES WELCOME VETERANS U.S. runs another iiT-pIus deficit 4th straight year mark surpassed I li ttrjt. it. ji(rf i-inS nrr if Rodricgues Jenkins of Mendenhall attends Belhaven University in Jackson, voted one of the most veteran-friendly schools in the State.

RICK GUYTHE CLARION-LEDGER 10 colleges saluted By Paul Wiseman Associated Press WASHINGTON The United States has now spent $1 trillion more than it's taken in for four straight years. The TVeasury Department confirmed Friday what was widely expected: The deficit for the just-ended 2012 budget year the gap between the government's tax revenue and its spending totaled $1.1 trillion. It wasn't quite as ugly as last year. Thanks to a slightly healthier economy, revenue rose 6.4 percent from 2011. And government spending fell 1.7 percent to $3.5 trillion.

That reflected, in part, less defense spending as U.S. military involvement in Iraq was winding down and less spending on Medicaid. As a result, the deficit shrank 16 percent, or $207 billion. A stronger economy meant more people had jobs and income that generated tax revenue. Corporations also contributed more to federal revenue than in 2011.

Barack Obama's presidency has now coincided with four straight $1 trillion-plus annual budget deficits the first in history and an issue in an election campaign that ends in 3V2 weeks. When Obama took office in January 2009, the Congressional Budget Office forecast that the deficit that year would total $1.2 trillion. It ended up at a record $1.41 trillion. The increase was due, in part, to higher government spending to fight the worst recession since the Great Depression. Tax cuts enacted under President George VV.

Bush and wars in Iraq and Afghanistan contributed to the deficits. Here's a closer look at the facts surrounding the nation's pile of debt: See DEFICIT, Page 5A AMONG THE BEST Victory Media in Pittsburgh, has published its list of Military Friendly Schools since 2009. The most recent list named 10 Mississippi higher education institutions among the best in the nation for service to students who served in the U.S. Armed Forces. Belhaven University Copiah-Lincoln Community College Delta State University East Central Community College Jackson State University Jones County Junior College Meridian Community College Mississippi State University University of Mississippi -Main Campus William Carey University biology.

Jenkins' six-month stay in Kuwait that began last October helped him take one of his first steps toward that goal. "Going to school, they pay for my education," said Jenkins, who as a deployed military servicemember falls under provisions in the federal G.I. Bill that guarantee the cost of a college degree. And the perks from the law also give the veteran another reason to stick to his studies. "You get paid to go to school as long as you keep up your GPA," Jenkins added.

But even the federal legislation doesn't guarantee an "above and beyond" approach to assisting enrolled veterans. Jenkins said the moment he arrived on the Belhaven campus, he was sent to the school's registrar's office where he would meet his military liaison. The number of students enrolling at the private Christian university with veteran benefits has been steadily increasing over the last three years, said Kathie Perrett, who works in the school's registrar's office See VETERANS, Page 4A By Dustin Barnes dbarnes2ejackson.gannett.com Mississippi remains perched atop the list as one of the most patriotic states in the country. And when a media group recently published its annual survey of the most veteran friendly colleges and universities in each state, Mississippi had 10 schools on the list. Granted, versions of the federal G.I.

Bill assure military servicemembers have access to a network of benefits for their college careers. But the personal touches and delivery of these benefits many veterans say they find at Mississippi's schools are what could have given them the edge on the 2013 Military Friendly Schools list published by the veteran-owned Victory Media in Pittsburgh, Pa. At Belhaven University one of the state's two private university's to make the list U.S. Army Specialist Rodricgues Jenkins, 20, is taking another step to becoming a cardiologist, a career goal for the Mendenhall freshman who is majoring in COMING SUNDAY Macedonia hearing set for jailed woman nil fijyi warns. "Macedonian customs it autnormes may enforce 'i strict regula- tions on the temporary importation to or Candi Dunlap Candi Dunlap, who remains in a Skopje, Macedonia, jail following her Sept.

28 arrest The State Department site advises that "while you are traveling in Macedonia, you are subject to its laws even if you are a U.S. citizen. Foreign laws and legal systems can be vastly different from our own. In some places you may be taken in for questioning if you do not have your passport with you. In some places, it is illegal to take pictures of certain buildings." The nurse practitioner at Oktibbeha County Hospital in Starkville was part of a medical missions team from Merdian's Fifteenth Avenue Baptist Church.

She and members of the group were at the Skopje, Macedonia, airport trying to return home when Dunlap was detained. Authorities accuse her of smuggling coins considered artifacts out of the country in her carry-on baggage. Mission trip members say the coins were given to Dunlap as a gift by a Macedonian citizen and that she had no idea they were not to be transported. Her husband, Marc, remains in Macedonia and has See MACEDONIA, Page 4A By Ruth Ingram nngramclarjonledger.com Macedonia's legal system and strict enforcement of import and export regulations noted on the U.S. Department of State's website may be why a Meridian medical missionary is in jail there on alleged smuggling charges.

Americans traveling in Macedonia need to be aware of how different the country's legal system is from that in the United States and of different regulations on taking items or souvenirs out of the country, the website Jobs. Income. Options. Dropping out of school limits all three. The Clarion-Ledger beginning Sunday, in the second in a series of stories examining the challenges facing public education in the state, takes an in-depth look at the high school dropout problem in Mississippi and what can be done to solve it.

exportation from Macedonia of certain items; such items include those deemed to be of historical value or significance," the State Department says on its Macedonia page, located at www.travel.state.gov. Those factors could have come into play in the situation of Meridian resident INDEX Vol.175 No. 227 Copynght 2012 FORECAST Sunny, warm and muggy. A chance for storms Sunday. Weather, 10B High 88 Low 65 CORRECTIONS If the Clarion-Ledger publishes an error, we will correct it.

To report an error, call (601) 961-7163. rj iiiyiiiiy Retail $1 00 See page 4A for pricing details. 4B IB 10A 1C Business 8A Deaths Classified 4D MetroState Comics 8-9B Opinion Crossword 9B, SD Sports St. Dominic's Comprehensive Cancer Center Follow us on Facebook for the location of our "Drive to Inspire" car during the month of October. Come out and join us during breast cancer awareness month.

Remember to "Fit a Mammogram" 'into your schedule. For more information on Cancer Services, Of rrmirnVo pleasevisitourwebsitestdom.com or call 601.200.8000. rvS UOIIllIllL'.