The Short List - April 15, 2011

• The deal is done as Congress passed the budget for FY 2011, but the debate over raising the debt ceiling is on the horizon.  Wall Street executives are warning Speaker Boehner about using the debt ceiling as a bargaining chip.


• Several journalists are missing in Libya, as they try to report what's going on inside the country.


• Human rights activists have started to question, in earnest, the muted U.S. response to the crushing of dissent in Bahrain.  A reminder there is no Obama Doctrine, and as we posted previously, that's okay.


• In Nigeria, a move toward a more free and fair, if expensive, election process.


• The Economist considers Gbagbo's arrest and the future of the Ivory Coast.


• Arizona is again at the forefront of asonine legislation, as the "birther bill" passed through the state house last night.  If signed into law by Gov. Brewer, the legislation would require all presidential candidates to prove their citizenship, before having their name placed on the ballot.  Despite objections to the contrary, the legislation is a not-so veiled attempt to discredit President Obama, who 51% of polled Republican primary voters believe was not born in the United States.  Washington Post's Fact Checker on this malarkey.