Private Equity vs. Public Equity: the White House Tries to Explain

Earlier today, White House press secretary Jay Carney was asked about Solyndra. He responded that the government made a number of “green energy” investments; some of the companies failed, but most haven’t (not yet, anyway). So an alert reporter asked Carney how that is any different from Mitt Romney’s Bain Capital experience, which has been so bitterly attacked by Barack Obama. As Romney has often said, Bain made many investments, frequently in troubled companies; most succeeded, but some failed. Carney’s deer-in-the-headlights response is entertaining:

Actually, of course, Bain’s record was far better than the Obama administration’s. There is a good lesson here: Bain’s record was better because it decided to invest based on the numbers, not based on favoritism and political influence.

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