Ex-President George H.W. Bush taken to hospital

HOUSTON (AP) - Former President George H.W. Bush was admitted to a Houston hospital Tuesday evening after experiencing a shortness of breath, a family spokesman said.<br /> <br /> Bush, 90, was taken by ambulance to Houston Methodist Hospital as a "precaution," according to spokesman Jim McGrath. He "will be held for observation, again as a precaution," McGrath said in a statement.<br /> <br /> Bush spent nearly two months in the same hospital and was discharged in January 2013 after treatment for a bronchitis-related cough and other issues.<br /> <br /> The White House said President Barack Obama, who is vacationing in Hawaii, has been notified about Bush's hospital admission.<br /> <br /> "President Obama and the first lady send their good wishes to the former president and the entire Bush family during this holiday season," said White House spokesman Eric Schultz.<br /> <br /> Bush, who can no longer use his legs, made two public appearances last month. He attended at an event at Texas A&M University with his son, former President George W. Bush.<br /> <br /> The elder Bush also served as the coin toss captain for the Houston Texans during a Nov. 23 game that honored the U.S. Armed Forces.<br /> <br /> Bush, the 41st president, had served two terms as Ronald Reagan's vice president when he was elected in 1988. Four years later, after a term highlighted by the success of the 1991 Gulf War in Kuwait, he lost to Democrat Bill Clinton amid voters' concerns about the economy.<br /> <br /> He was a naval aviator in World War II - at one point the youngest in the Navy - and was shot down over the Pacific.<br /> <br /> The elder Bush has skydived on at least three of his birthdays since leaving the White House. In June, he celebrated his 90th birthday by making a tandem parachute jump near his summer home in Kennebunkport, Maine. During the winter, Bush and his wife, Barbara, live in Houston.<br /> <br /> Bush, also a former U.S. ambassador to China and CIA director, suffers from a form of Parkinson's disease that has forced him in recent years to use a motorized scooter or wheelchair for mobility.