I imagine that most of what Bain Capital was doing was legitimate—some may not like it, but there is a need for firms who specialize in clearing out financial debris, reconsolidating failing businesses, etc. (vultures, as it were).
A more useful point of attack against Romney, would be to assault the narrative of him being a so-called entrepreneurial businessman with his finger on the pulse of the “real economy”—he isn’t that: he’s just been a successful finance guy who’s headed an investment firm. Which is a very different kind of acumen, and it’s questionable how appropriate that kind of acumen will be for creating jobs.
It's pretty clear that's the ultimate question. But in order to get there one needs to be somewhat apprised on Bain Capital's history. And to most out there, it reeks of the kind of over-leveraging that gave us the bank bailouts.