A newly released Treasury Department audit finds that the Obama administration rushed the $535 million loan guarantee to Solyndra without properly vetting its merits before the solar-panel manufacturer connected with Obama fundraiser George Kaiser went bankrupt last September.
According to e-mails released by the House Energy and Commerce Committee staff last fall, the Bush administration determined that Solyndra did not meet the minimum requirements to participate in the Department of Energy’s (DOE) loan guarantee program.
And a Bush administration official went as far as to write on Jan. 13, 2009, just prior to the Obama administration’s taking power, that: “After canvassing the committee it was the unanimous decision not to engage in any further discussions with Solyndra at this time.”
But that changed after inauguration day, and the Energy Department ignored requirements to consult with the Treasury Department on the credit committee’s loan review. It went on to announce a conditional commitment to finance Solyndra two months after the Bush officials had raised red flags about the solar panel manufacturer’s viability.
The Treasury Department Inspector General’s report indicated that it had obtained an internal Treasury e-mail correspondence that stated: “DOE says their hands are tied on this issue …They are under pressure to complete the deal.”
But Treasury officials complained they were not given a defined role in the review of Solyndra’s loan guarantee.
“The Treasury report echoes what our investigation has shown over and over; Solyndra was a bad bet from the beginning that was rushed out the door while every red flag was ignored. Treasury’s report confirms the agency had been effectively cut out of the loan guarantee process despite federal laws and regulations that require their consultation,” Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton, Michigan Republican, and Oversight Subcommittee Chairman Cliff Stearns said in a statement.
“At every step of the way, Treasury was clearly an afterthought in Solyndra’s loan guarantee as well as its restructuring that put company investors ahead of taxpayers. What this report and our continuing investigation show is an Obama administration that was either not up to the job, was cavalier in its attitude for following federal laws, or both.”
