Was Carly Fiorina a good business executive, or a poor one? That's a hot question in United States politics as Ms. Fiorina rises in the polls. Right now, the media is full of in-depth examinations of her tenure as CEO of Hewlett-Packard and her 20 years at Lucent. Both firms grew during her tenure but both struggled after she left, and it remains unclear whether her decisions contributed to their stumbles.

However, amid the flurry of competing profit claims and clashing job figures, there's a third question that's going largely unasked: Is the top-level business experience of Fiorina and Donald Trump actually relevant to the presidency?

After all, the Oval Office is a very different place from a Fortune 500 corner office. Government bureaucrats don't instantly obey orders. Troublesome lawmakers can't be dismissed. Reporters are so interested in your decisions that a horde of them occupies a press office in your own building.

Some CEO qualities are indeed useful in politics, JPMorgan Chase Chairman and CEO Jamie Dimon said Sunday on "Meet the Press." Successful business executives have a general talent for running things, he said, and for identifying and recruiting successful subordinates.