WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. government’s budget deficit through February hit an all-time high of $l.05 trillion for the first five months of this budget year. The red ink pooled as spending to deal with the coronavirus pandemic surged at a pace far above the increase in tax revenue. The Treasury Department reported Wednesday that the October through February deficit was 68% larger than the $624.5 billion deficit recorded during the same period last year. It easily surpassed the previous five-month deficit of $652 billion set in 2010 when the government was spending to try to lift the country out of the deep recession caused by the 2008 financial crisis.
