Posted by Tina
Anybody remember the solar company Solyndra? We reported about this company regarding the failure of stimulus funds to create jobs at this company a while back. Solyndra was one of the companies that the Obama administration used to tout its stimulus program. He and Joe did one of those video tours complete with hard hats. Old Arny even got into the act. Solyndra was going to provide clean energy and create hundreds of new tech “jobs for the future”. As Joe Biden said at the time, “These jobs are the jobs that are going to define the 21st century that will allow America to compete and to lead like we did in the 20th century.”
The American people, through the Department of Energy, gave Solyndra a $535 Million loan guarantee to construct a new building…a shovel ready project. Market circumstances, mainly competition from China, scuttled the new building plans and caused company layoffs.
Today the project is under investigation to determine why the loans were granted and how funds were used:
But now Fred Upton and Cliff Stearns, chairmen of the House Energy and Commerce Committee and Oversight Subcommittee, have been examining the company’s financials and the possibility of waste and fraud. Since its 2005 founding, it seems that Solyndra has never made a profit and its own auditor had raised serious questions that did not slow or stop the immense guarantee’s approval by the Obama administration.
Last week Upton and Stearns wrote Energy Secretary Steven Chu. The Republicans said:
While we understand the purpose of the Loan Guarantee Program is to help private companies engaging in clean energy products to obtain financing by providing loan guarantees, subsequent events raise questions if Solyndra was the right candidate to receive a loan guarantee in excess of half a billion dollars.
Oh, one other thing: The majority owner of Solyndra is George Kaiser. He’s an Oklahoma billionaire. He was also a bundler, a major fundraiser, for the 2008 presidential campaign of Barack Obama and Joe Biden.
Hmmmmm
Okay, here’s the deal, we need to pass a law that says if any legislator, right up to the president, uses the taxpayer money to fund a crony, he is guilty of a felony. If that amount is in excess of a million dollars it’s a 20 year offense, no early out. Hey, if we robbed a bank for a $100k we would get that and more. They’re robbing us of hundreds of millions all the time and getting away with it – its sickening.
When I read stories like this it just reminds me that investing our money in government for anything besides basic bare bones protections…justice/legal and military…is very risky. The people in charge of handling it have no reason to manage it carfully or to make sure we get value for the investment. This is a half billion dollars…where is it? What value did taxpayers receive? This is also only one instance…OMG the waste.
I shoulda said…”don’t get me started”.
Idon’t think there is a question how the funds have been used, read below.
“DOE loan chief Jonathan Silver came out in support for Solyndra when we talked to him last year. He pointed out that Solyndra was planning to close the factory, it just happened sooner than intended. Solyndra has not been granted any loan funds and is reportedly on track to produce 300 megawatts of panels annually, which is higher than the 210 megawatts estimated at the project inception.”
http://daringminds.com/new/solyndra-and-government-support-for-cleantech-under-fire/
Brad thanks responding and providing a link. I was unable to access the website. I wish the company well but still question the association between the administration and the funds that the American people supplied. Your quote indicates that funds were not granted but both the LA Times above and the San Jose Mercury News report otherwise. The Mercury News article (below) was posted Jan 31, 2011:
http://www.mercurynews.com/business/ci_17221170?nclick_check=1
The article goes on to say that the company is focusing on sales to commercial entities (smart move) and reining in spending (smart move).
The lay offs still happened and the jobs have not materialized as sold by the administration. It’s one thing for individuals in the private sector to risk that kind of money and quite another for our government to risk it by printing money and racking up debt. Government has no business using taxpayer money in a risky venture.