Bush DID NOT Support Loan to Solyndra

[Mike]

I just wanted to head off any wild-azz theories before OT comes up with more lies.

Treasury Joins FBI, Congress in Investigating Stimulus Loan to Failed Solar Panel Company


Published September 15, 2011 | FoxNews.com


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The Treasury Department has launched an investigation into a now-defunct solar panel company's $528 million stimulus loan, focusing specifically on the federal bank that processed it.

The loan to Solyndra has set off a firestorm on Capitol Hill, with a Republican-led House committee releasing emails suggesting the White House had pressured budget officials into expediting their fiscal review of the loan ahead of a plant groundbreaking. The company was touted prominently by the Obama administration for its work growing so-called green jobs.

But the company went bankrupt this month and is now the target of investigations by the FBI and the Energy Department, as well the House Energy and Commerce Committee.

The Treasury Inspector General's Office said Wednesday night that it too, is investigating the loan, because it was processed by Federal Financing Bank, a government lending institution that falls under Treasury's control. The Treasury's investigation was first reported by ABC News, which quoted a spokesman as saying investigators would "look at everything the FFB had to do with its role in this thing."

Obama administration officials on Wednesday defended their support for the loan, claiming the firm fell victim to global economic trends but that federal investment in alternative energy must continue and the administration is moving to finalize as many as 15 loan guarantees for renewable energy companies before the stimulus program ends on Sept. 30.

The testimony came as Republican and Democratic lawmakers raised sharp questions about the decision that ultimately left taxpayers on the hook for millions, and as the newly released emails show administration officials were raising doubts about the loan proposal to Solyndra months before it was finalized.

Rep. Fred Upton, R-Mich., said the program was "shrouded in secrecy and uncertainty," questioning whether the loan represented "one bad bet" or the "tip of the iceberg."

Jeffrey Zients, deputy director of the White House budget office, acknowledged that Solyndra's bankruptcy will "limit the government's recovery of funds." He called the outcome "very unfortunate."

But at the hearing Wednesday, he said administration officials provided a "thorough examination and analysis" of the loan proposal and said a "challenging global solar market" has made business harder for companies like Solyndra.

Jonathan Silver, director of the Energy Department's energy loan office, also said a combination of factors -- namely China flooding the marketplace with cheap solar panels and the European buying market tightening as a result of their economic troubles -- has caused solar-cell prices to plummet.

"These changes were particularly damaging to Solyndra," he said.

Silver said Solyndra's projects were considered "advanced" dating back to 2008. "In 2009, Solyndra appeared to be well-positioned to compete and succeed in the global marketplace," Silver said.

But emails released by the House committee show that the relevant credit committee decided "not to engage in further discussions with Solyndra" in the final days of the Bush administration. After the change in administration, officials restarted the loan review process for Solyndra.

"A half a billion dollars that was not supported in January under the Bush administration was ... conditionally recommended in March," Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas, pointed out.

Asked whether political influence played a role in the loan being approved, Silver said, "I don't believe so."

The emails at least show budget analysts felt rushed by the White House to review the loan guarantee in time for an announcement by Vice President Biden in September 2009.


Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/09/14/treasury-joins-fbi-congress-in-investigating-stimulus-loan-to-failed-solar/#ixzz1Y2Cq01CL

 

[flounder]

as much as 60 $Billion dollars or more of taxpayers money LOOTED from funds going to Iraq and Afghanistan during the bush era, compared to the $537 million Solyndra lost. just comparing one apple to one orange here.

 

[Mike]

I think I'll take a stab at creating a new acronym.

NWCO = Not worth commenting on

 

[MsSage]

At least four other companies have received stimulus funding only to later file for bankruptcy, and two of those were working on alternative energy.

 

[Red Barn Angus]

It would take some mighty poor loan analysts to not be able to look at trends in the industry and see the possibility of cheap competition taking away their business. With only two years from loan approval to bankruptcy I wonder if the plant ever manufactured a solar panel. I'd bet there are some very rich company officers in that company that may never have had any intention of building solar panels. They spotted a sucker in Obama and played it to the hilt.

 

[hypocritexposer]

It would take some mighty poor loan analysts to not be able to look at trends in the industry and see the possibility of cheap competition taking away their business. With only two years from loan approval to bankruptcy I wonder if the plant ever manufactured a solar panel. I'd bet there are some very rich company officers in that company that may never have had any intention of building solar panels. They spotted a sucker in Obama and played it to the hilt.

RBarn, the employees knew at the time the loan was given that they were bankrupt. The rumor in the plant was that they were holding off filing, so as to get the "free stimulus money"

 

[Red Barn Angus]

So where did the money go? If it was known they were going to file bankruptcy then there would be no point in paying their creditors and suppliers. Sounds like the money could have gone to senior officers of the corp in the form of salaries and advisory fees. Which, of course, would be fraud but what about Obama pushing for the money to be given to the company.....sounds a little like fraud as well. Is he accountable to no one?

 

[hypocritexposer]

So where did the money go? If it was known they were going to file bankruptcy then there would be no point in paying their creditors and suppliers. Sounds like the money could have gone to senior officers of the corp in the form of salaries and advisory fees. Which, of course, would be fraud but what about Obama pushing for the money to be given to the company.....sounds a little like fraud as well. Is he accountable to no one?

did you ever watch Glenn Beck? Ever hear of the theory "green is red"? Check into Van Jones and all the other "green" companies that the "left" believes in supporting.

IMO, this was a case of corporate executives taking advantage of an ideology that they knew obama believed in.

 

[Mike]

May be that Solydra was the "Shovel-Ready" project that will dig Buckwheat's Presidential grave.

 

[hypocritexposer]

May be that Solydra was the "Shovel-Ready" project that will dig Buckwheat's Presidential grave.

From what I heard the Solydra plant is right next door to the Tesla plant, but you won't hear this from Democrats, because Bush did not believe in alternative energy, or science.

He had that secret meeting with energy companies......you know? Oops, I mean oil companies.....

 

[hypocritexposer]

"The optics of a Solyndra default will be bad," an official from the Office of Management and Budget wrote in a Jan. 31 email to a senior OMB official. "The timing will likely coincide with the 2012 campaign season heating up."

The email, released by the House Energy and Commerce Committee as part of its investigation into the Solyndra loan, showed that Obama administration officials were concerned about Solyndra's financial health even as they publicly declared the solar panel maker in good shape.

http://news.yahoo.com/white-house-worried-solyndra-default-030844363.html