Here is a major R&D for April 7th:

Profile: Ai Weiwei from the BBC
Ai Weiwei is a Chinese artist who has been vocal about human rights abuses in China.  Weiwei has been arrested by the Chinese government for economic crimes and analysts believe it is part of a wider crackdown on liberal activists in the country.

Spain ‘won’t follow Portugal’ with bail-out from the UK Telegraph
Spain’s government has announced that it will not follow Portugal in seeking an EU bailout for its ailing economy.  Spain is pursuing austerity measures in an attempt to shore up its public finances, which have sparked protests by thousands of young people.

Libya Crisis Exposes AU’s Soft Underbelly from the Nairobi Star (couresty of AllAfrica)
The African Union wants to take on a stronger role in solving African issues, but the recent Libyan war demonstrates that the organization can be indecisive at best and irresponsible at worst.

The handicapped union from the Economist
According to Charlemagne in the Economist, the European Union is being hurt by a lack of leadership by its most prominent countries.  Charlemagne’s solution, as always, is a call for more democracy and transparency within the EU.

Obama’s nod to Al Sharpton: asset or liability for 2012 reelection bid? from the Christian Science Monitor
On Wednesday, President Obama attended an event by the National Action Network, which is led by the Rev. Al Sharpton.  Obama’s attendance signifies that he is trying to rally his base ahead of the 2012 presidential election, but some think that reaching out to a controversial figure like Sharpton could hurt his standing with white and independent voters.

Paul Ryan’s Budget: The Atlantic’s Official Guide from the Atlantic
Republican Wisconsin Representative Paul Ryan unveiled his ambitious budget proposal earlier this week.  This is a small guide from the Atlantic that describes the plan and some quick reaction to it.

What US government shutdown would look like from Reuters
This factbox article from Reuters describes what will happen if the government shuts down at the end of the week and details what services will be affected.

Statewide recount would be first in more than 20 years from the Milwakuee Journal Sentinel
Wisconsin’s Supreme Court race is coming down to the wire as incumbent Justice David Prosser, who is supported by Republicans, is trailing challenger JoAnne Kloppenburg by a little more than 300 votes.  A recount will likely be ordered, the first in Wisconsin in more than twenty years.

Ivory Coast in Crisis: Abidjan’s Horrific Endgame from Time
The battle for political control in the Ivory Coast may be entering its endgame, as forces loyal to Allassane Ouattara are clashing with forces loyal to President Laurent Gbagbo at Gbagbo’s residence.

WSJ/NBC Poll: A Donald Trump Surprise from the Wall Street Journal
Although former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney is making more headlines than most GOP presidential contenders, a shocking new poll from the Wall Street Journal and NBC reveals that Donald Trump is tied for second in the race with former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee. Trump has not officially declared that he is running for president, but his anti-China talk on the campaign trail is attracting a following.

Tunisian Migrants Open Tensions in Europe from the New York Times
Migrants from Tunisia, which kicked off the wave of Arab unrest months ago, are causing unrest in Europe as France is refusing to open its borders to Tunisian refugees, leaving Italy to bear most of the burden.

Japan Sets Plan to Avert Hydrogen Blast from the Wall Street Journal
Government officials and Tokyo Electric Power Company are working on a plan to avoid a hydrogen explosion at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power complex.  An explosion would spread more radiation across Japan.

Why Goldstone’s ‘edit’ won’t ease pressure on Israel from CNN
Although Richard Goldstone has said that he is reconsidering his controversial 2009 report on the Gaza war, experts say that the international community will likely not relieve its pressure on Israel to make peace with the Palestinians.

Portugal official says his country needs a bailout from the Associated Press
Reeling from a perilous fiscal situation, Portugal’s finance minister announced today that his country needs a bailout from the European Union and the International Monetary Fund.  Portugal is said to need $114.4 billion to shore up its finances.

In White House’s view, Paul Ryan’s plan a weapon for 2012 from Politico
The White House believes that it can use Paul Ryan’s budget plan as a focal point in its 2012 campaign in order to show that Republicans are too extreme.  However, President Obama may be limited by his own pledges to look at entitlement spending.

Libyan rebels say NATO airstrikes hit their forces from the Associated Press
Libyan rebel fighters said that NATO forces hit them with an airstrike today, making this the second time that NATO forces have accidentally hit the rebels in less than a week.

Obama administration: Shutdown would hurt economy from Business Week
The Obama administration argues that if the government were to shut down that it would hurt the economic recovery by halting the processing of tax returns and limit small business loans and government-guaranteed mortgages.

GOP bid to keep EPA from regulating greenhouse gases fails from the Boston Globe
Senate Republicans, who have been aiming to keep the Environmental Protection Agency from regulating greenhouse gas emissions under the Clean Air Act, suffered a defeat on the Seat floor yesterday when the Senate rejected their proposal 50-50.  Four Democrats supported the GOP measure.

Obama urges patience with higher gas prices from the Washington Examiner
President Obama told a skeptical Pennsylvania audience yesterday that the American people need to trust his energy policies and that there is very little that he can do in the short-term to relieve high gas costs.

Will Libya Become Obama’s Iraq? from the Council on Foreign Relations
This op-ed from Adjunt Senior Fellow Meghan L. O’Sullivan, which was printed in the Washington Post on April 1st, analyzes whether Libya is going to become an Iraqi-style headache for the Obama administration.