Volcker Rule's Distraction

Two years after President Obama signed the Dodd-Frank financial-reform law, lawmakers, reporters, and the public are uncertain about whether the law has achieved its goals, even as JPMorgan's surprise trading loss highlights the economy's remaining vulnerability to financial-industry shocks. By focusing on the Volcker Rule, lawmakers are missing an opportunity to sharpen financial regulations so that markets, not regulators, can govern large financial firms.