Why is Mitt Romney's time at Bain Capital such a target?

The campaign quickly launched an online map showing the 14 countries where Romney’s company had opened call centers and plants or provided manufacturing services.

The day after the Washington Post story, the New York Times detailed instances when Romney and other Bain executives earned large sums at a time when some companies they were involved with failed.

A key paragraph:

“The private equity firm, co-founded and run by Mitt Romney, held a majority stake in more than 40 United States-based companies from its inception in 1984 to early 1999, when Mr. Romney left Bain to lead the Salt Lake City Olympics. Of those companies, at least seven eventually filed for bankruptcy while Bain remained involved, or shortly afterward, according to a review by The New York Times. In some instances, hundreds of employees lost their jobs. In most of those cases, however, records and interviews suggest that Bain and its executives still found a way to make money.”

The New York Times published this response from Bain Capital:

“We understand that in a political campaign some may distort or our investment activity by cherry picking a few negative situations while ignoring our overall track record. But, the truth is that less than 5 percent of our companies filed for bankruptcy while under our control, a figure consistent with the broader economy, and revenues have grown in 80 percent of the more than 350 companies in which we have invested.”

Will any of this make any difference?

“Republicans argue publicly that the attacks have failed to move the needle in polling, so why engage, and that voters are more concerned about their own lives,” writes Maggie Haberman at Politico.com. “But privately, some Republicans believe and/or fear there will be an aggregate effect in key states among middle class voters from the Bain assault.”

As they try to frame an answer for dismal jobs and unemployment figures, that’s what the Obama camp is hoping for.

The pro-Obama Priorities USA Action superpac has launched a series of TV ads featuring employees of companies it says were shut down by Bain.

You can expect more such political thrust and parry as the presidential campaign continues.

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