Frum doesn’t come right out and say it explicitly, but reading this, it appears Frum believes Republican leaders are — or at least may be — trying to hurt the economy on purpose, as part of a political strategy to undermine President Obama during a crisis. In other words, Frum seems to be suggesting that the top GOP officials in Congress, including the entire party leadership, may be involved in some kind of sabotage campaign. 
Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), vice chairman of the Senate Democratic Conference, believes “some” Republicans “want the economy to actually fail” on purpose. Paul Krugman recently said in his column, “[I]t’s hard to avoid the suspicion that G.O.P. leaders actually want the economy to perform badly.”
...And I’m telling you that the business community in this country is frightened to death of the weird political philosophy of the President of the United States. And until he’s gone, everybody’s going to be sitting on their thumbs. — Steve Wynn
Democrat, Liberal, Obama, Narrative, Energy
Disgraced former MSNBC and Current TV anchor Keith Olbermann suggested Sunday there's a conspiracy to drive up gas prices in order to harm President Obama. Such was said on ABC's This Week in response to host George Stephanopoulos's question regarding the impact speculation has on what consumers pay at the pump.
Democrat, Liberal, Obama, Narrative, Smears, Economy
Republicans looking to defeat President Barack Obama in November’s general election are rooting for the American economy to fail, the chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee said in an interview Sunday. Appearing on CNN’s “State of the Union,” Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz said criticism from Republicans on Friday’s worse-than-expected jobs report was reflective of their political motives.
Liberal, Protest
West Coast ports tried to get back to business as usual Tuesday as they tallied their losses after anti-Wall Street protests that blocked trucks and curbed business along busy waterfronts. Long lines of trucks waited outside port gates and some workers reported early to clear the cargo backlog left after thousands of Occupy demonstrators forced shipping terminals in Oakland, Calif., Portland, Ore., and Longview, Wash., to halt parts of their operations Monday.
Liberal, Protest, Vandalism
According to Santa Cruz Police, the suspects left behind more than $30,000 worth of damage to the vacant Well Fargo building before finally leaving Sunday night.
Liberal, Violence, Threats, Protest, Vandalism
She and her employees are terrified by the constant threats, which she said began after she demanded the protesters stop using her shop’s restroom as a place to bathe every day. The final straw came about two weeks ago, when the demonstrators broke a bathroom sink, flooding the shop, and clogged the toilet -- setting her back $3,000 in damages.
Hypocrisy, Liberal, Oops, Protest
The owner of a normally bustling downtown Manhattan cafe claims that 21 of his employees lost their jobs last week and that it is a direct result of the Occupy Wall Street protests. Marc Epstein, owner of the Milk Street Cafe at 40 Wall St., said he was forced to lay off the members of his staff last Friday after suffering a 30 percent dip in sales in the six weeks since the protests started.
Liberal, Crime, Protest
BOSTON (CBS) – Linda Capillo doesn’t know why, after 23 years, her small convenience store on Congress Street is being targeted by thieves. “After they came through the door, I put bars on it,” said Capillo. “Then, they start coming through the window.” In 23 years, she had never had a break-in at Congress Card & Tobacco on 230 Congress Street. But in the past month, there have been four. Each time, the thieves took nothing but cigarettes, scratch tickets and/or cash.
While claiming to hate banks, Occupy protestors have a creepy penchant for disrupting sea traffic. Their new plan is to halt ships in Washington state. Now Coast Guard escorts are being called in. It's not enough. This is piracy.
Liberal, Crime, Protest, Vandalism
FORT COLLINS, Colo. -- Police have arrested an Occupy Fort Collins protester in connection with a $10 million arson fire that damaged dozens of condominiums and businesses in Fort Collins.
Hypocrisy, Liberal, Protest
Heady with their successful attempts to block trucks and curb business at busy ports up and down the West Coast, some Occupy Wall Street protesters plan to continue their blockades and keep staging similar protests despite requests to stop because they're hurting wage earners. Thousands of demonstrators forced shipping terminals in Oakland, Calif., Portland, Ore., and Longview, Wash., to halt parts of their operations Monday.
Liberal, Protest
OAKLAND (CBS SF)– Occupy Oakland organizers said Monday that they are calling for work stoppages, school walkouts and the closure of banks and corporations during a general strike and mass day of action that’s planned for Wednesday.
Liberal, Crime, Violence, Protest, Vandalism
Occupy Oakland protesters claimed victory after they shut down one of the nation's busiest shipping ports - escalating a movement whose tactics had largely been limited to marches, rallies and camps. In a five-hour stand-off protesters vandalised businesses and smashed bank windows, as they tried to shut down the city - and police appeared to respond using tear gas and flash bang grenades.
Liberal, Protest, Economy, Jobs
“If this doesn’t stop soon I will be out of business,” said Marc Epstein, 53, president of Milk Street Cafe on Wall Street, less than a block from the New York Stock Exchange. Sales have dropped about 20 percent since the protests began last month and the 103 jobs created by the cafe’s opening in June are now at risk, said Epstein, who is not alone. Caroline Anderson, general manager of Boutique Tourbillon, a Wall Street jewelry store, said customer traffic is down about 20 percent, and Vincent Alessi, a managing partner at Bobby Van’s Steakhouse on Broad Street, said his lunch business has been cut in half.
Liberal, Protest, Economy
Milk Street Cafe, the restaurant whose business dried up in the face of the Occupy Wall Street barricades, is shutting down. Thursday will be the last day for the 23,000 square-foot eatery that opened at 40 Wall St. in June, the Daily News has learned.
Liberal, Violence, Protest
The conflict came hours after thousands of Occupy Oakland protesters marched on the Port of Oakland, disrupting operations at the nation’s fifth largest port and causing all maritime operations in the city to be shut down.