Executives from solar panel manufacturer Solyndra, which received over a half a billion dollars in loan guarantees from the Obama administration before filing for bankruptcy earlier this month, will not answer questions from Congressional investigators as scheduled this Friday, citing their Fifth amendment rights, Reuters reports.
Originally, the company’s president and chief executive, Brian Harrison, and W.G. Stover, Jr., its chief financial officer, were scheduled to testify as part of last Wednesday’s hearing on questionable loans before the House Energy and Commerce’s oversight subcommittee.
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Oversight subcommittee chairman Rep. Cliff Stearns, R-Fla.,, speaking to bloggers at the Heritage Foundation last week, said the executives called the committee staff and asked whether they would be allowed to delay their testimony until this week. If they were granted the additional time, they said they’d agree not to exercise their Fifth Amendment right not to answer questions, according to Stearns.
But today, Reuters reports that the executives’ lawyers advised them against answering questions.
Spokesmen from the House Energy and Commerce Committee and Stearns’ office were contacted by the Examiner, but did not provide immediate comment.
