Wealth Creation Is Not the Enemy

Wealth Creation Is Not the Enemy

President Obama accuses Mitt Romney of putting profits above people by striving to create wealth rather than jobs during his 15 years at Bain Capital. This critique of Romney's work at the private equity firm, which Obama says will be central to his re-election campaign, betrays a fundamental misunderstanding of capitalism.

While private equity firms are a "healthy part of the free market," Obama said at a press conference last week, "their priority is to maximize profits, and that's not always going to be good for businesses or communities or workers." By contrast, he said, "My job is to take into...