house-oversight - ACTION - Command Center2024-03-29T02:18:01Zhttps://patriotcommandcenter.org/profiles/blogs/feed/tag/house-oversightBusting Open Obama Energy Department's Den of Deceptionhttps://patriotcommandcenter.org/profiles/blogs/busting-open-obama-energy-department-s-den-of-deception2012-11-05T18:07:27.000Z2012-11-05T18:07:27.000ZChristine Lakatoshttps://patriotcommandcenter.org/members/ChristineLakatos<div><p><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}4063622086,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img width="300" class="align-left" src="{{#staticFileLink}}4063622086,original{{/staticFileLink}}" alt="4063622086?profile=original" /></a>Benghazi isn’t the only White House cover up being exposed through leaked emails. State Department staffers aren’t the only career officials being blamed for President Obama’s inexperience, questionable judgment, and obvious cover up. A similar saga has just been exposed in the latest chapter of the green-energy crony-corruption scandal.</span></span><br /> <br /> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">On October 30, <a href="http://dailycaller.com/2012/10/30/as-many-as-fifty-obama-backed-green-energy-companies-bankrupt-or-troubled/"><u>The Daily Caller</u></a> ran a feature titled: <i>As many as fifty Obama backed green energy companies bankrupt or troubled</i>. The piece cited the work Christine Lakatos and I did in our three-part “green-energy failures” series released in October. Immensely popular, the DC article was picked up by numerous sites, including <a href="http://nation.foxnews.com/obama-adminstration/2012/10/30/many-fifty-obama-backed-green-energy-companies-bankrupt-or-financially-troubled"><u>Fox Nation</u></a> and <a href="http://www.gopusa.com/freshink/2012/10/31/looks-like-solyndra-isnt-the-only-obama-backed-company-going-under/?subscriber=1"><u>GOPUSA</u></a>. That night, Newt Gingrich was on Fox News’ On the Record with Greta Van Sustren. After discussing the incriminating Benghazi emails, he pointed to another possible “October surprise.”</span></span><br /> <br /> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">Gingrich teased: “The other big story, I think, that is going to break, is on corruption and extraordinary waste in the solar-power grants and direct involvement by the Obama White House, including the President, in the solar-panel grants involving billions of dollars, and I suspect that’s going to break Wednesday and Thursday of this week.”</span></span><br /> <br /> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">His sources were dead on. The next day, Wednesday, October 31, at 1:30PM ET, we received a tip regarding the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform’s release of more than <a href="http://oversight.house.gov/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/Appendix-I.pdf"><u>150 mails</u></a>, equaling hundreds of pages of convicting evidence, accompanied by a five-page “<a href="http://oversight.house.gov/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/2012-10-31-Memo-on-DOE-Loan-Guarantee-Program-Oversight.pdf"><u>Memorandum</u></a>” with the following subject line: “Update on Committee’s Oversight of the DOE Loan Guarantee Program: New Emails Show President Obama, Senior Administration Officials Misled American People about Role of President and White House in Program.”</span></span><br /> <br /> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">Through the research and writing we’ve done, <a href="http://greencorruption.blogspot.com/">Lakatos</a> and I were confident that there was direct involvement, after all, of the 26 loans (of which the majority <span style="font-size:small;">were "junk" rated</span>) issued through just the 1705 Loan Guarantee Program to 21 firms, virtually all of them had meaningful political ties (bundlers, donors, supporters, etc.,) to the White House and other high-ranking Democrats. Despite the obvious connection, President Obama has repeatedly denied any involvement. As it has done with Benghazi-gate, the White House, this time through Senior Advisor David Plouffe, while on Meet the Press (October 30, 2011), shuns responsibility for something politically uncomfortable: “decisions about the loan program were made by career officials in the Department of Energy on the merits.”</span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear:both;text-align:center;"><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-cS2kLkTEJW4/UJfNkXEBlQI/AAAAAAAABqo/EsQyF_MQpMU/s1600/steven-chu-solyndra.gi.top.jpg" style="clear:right;float:right;margin-bottom:1em;margin-left:1em;"><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-cS2kLkTEJW4/UJfNkXEBlQI/AAAAAAAABqo/EsQyF_MQpMU/s320/steven-chu-solyndra.gi.top.jpg" border="0" height="206" width="320" alt="steven-chu-solyndra.gi.top.jpg" /></a></span></span></div><p><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">Likewise, Secretary of Energy <b>Steven Chu</b>, while testifying before the House Energy and Commerce Committee in November of 2011, stuck to the talking points when, referencing the Solyndra debacle, under oath, he said: “I am aware of no communication from the White House to the Department of Energy saying to make the loan or to restructure.” More recently, March 2012, before the House Oversight Committee, Chu claimed: “we looked at the loans on their own merits.” At that same hearing, Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH), pressed Secretary Chu on nine of the firms that received loans, revealing their political connections. Chu countered that the loans were based on “merit.” Yet Jordan was perplexed, “so if you weren’t helping your buddies, and you were basing your decisions on the merits of the loan, how do you explain the fact that 23 of 27 recipients of the loan guarantees were rated as junk status investments?” <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VRPPpm8FR70"><u>Jordan concluded</u></a>, “If it wasn’t your political buddies, it had to be incompetence.”</span></span><br /> <br /> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">Also under oath, in the July 18, 2012, <a href="http://oversight.house.gov/hearing/the-administrations-bet-on-abound-solar-assessing-the-costs-to-the-american-taxpayers/"><u>Oversight Hearing</u></a> specifically addressing Abound Solar (now bankrupt and <a href="http://www.denverpost.com/commented/ci_21853854"><u>under investigation</u></a> for securities fraud, consumer fraud and financial misrepresentation), former Executive Director of the Loan Program Office (LPO), <b>Jonathan Silver</b> stated, “Because I am no longer at the department, I do not have access to the analysis done for the Abound project. As a result, I cannot comment in detail about the transaction, but what I can do however, is give you a flavor for what we try to do on this, and every project… The loan would have gone through multiple reviews independent of the loan program’s office, including detailed reviews by career credit professionals at DOE, and career staff at OMB, Treasury, and the National Economic Council.”</span></span><br /> <br /> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">Silver then emphatically informed the Committee<b>,</b> “This loan––<i>like all the loans</i> underwritten by career professionals, supported by outside specialists –– it was reviewed by career professionals from multiple executive branch offices.” “It was not rushed, the review took place over several years.” “It was not given to friends –– indeed no one in the Loan Program had any idea what individuals were involved in this [Abound] or any other transaction, nor did we care.” The questioning continued. Silver was asked if he saw any evidence of pay-to-play during his tenure. Silver’s response: “None whatsoever, sir—as I say, almost nobody that I am aware of in the Loan Program even knew who the individuals were who had invested, either directly or indirectly, into these companies.”</span></span><br /> <br /> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">During the October 11 <a href="http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/OTUS/vice-presidential-debate-transcript-danvilel-ky-oct-11/story?id=17457175&page=7#.UJP4-4XdtJN"><u>Vice Presidential debate</u></a>, when Paul Ryan challenged him on the oversight of the “$90 billion in green pork to campaign contributors,” <b>Vice President Biden</b> sang the same tune: “His colleague runs an investigative committee, spent months and months and months going into this. Months and months. They found no evidence of cronyism.”</span></span><br /> <br /> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">Just last week, October 26, 2012, <b>President Obama</b> continued the ruse, when he told a Denver, Colorado <a href="http://www.9news.com/news/local/article/296908/346/White-House-promoted-failed-solar-company"><u>news anchor</u></a> that decisions made in the loan program office are “decisions, by the way, that are made by the Department of Energy, they have nothing to do with politics.”</span></span><br /> <br /> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">Clearly the stories were coordinated, and were contrary to the obvious conclusions a thinking person would draw—which prompted the Oversight Committee to probe further. However, until the leaked emails were made public on Thursday, we had no proof. We needed the smoking gun.</span></span><br /> <br /> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">The tale-tellers, at the least, “misled the American people,” behaved unethically, and may well be guilty of perjury.</span></span><br /> <br /> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><b>Steven Chu, Secretary of Energy</b></span></span><br /> <br /> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">The emails revealed that Secretary Chu may well have perjured himself—though as Jordan implied, he may just be incompetent. We’ve <a href="http://finance.townhall.com/columnists/maritanoon/2012/07/06/more_obama_green_energy_corruption/page/full/"><u>written extensively</u></a> on the interaction of decision-makers in the Administration and its “buddies.” In the March 2012 hearing, Jordan asked specifically: “Did the White House call you about, talk to you about any of these…did someone from the White House talk to you, the Chief of Staff, someone from the White House, talk to you about these respective companies, involving these individuals?”</span></span><br /> <br /> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><a href="http://finance.townhall.com/columnists/maritanoon/2012/07/06/more_obama_green_energy_corruption/page/full/"><u>Our research</u></a> shows involvement of then-White House Chief of Staff Bill Daley in the BrightSource loan—one of the projects Jordan was asking about.</span></span><br /> <br /> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">The new emails show Chu personally issued orders to prioritize a project favored by House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer—Unistar.</span></span></p><blockquote class="tr_bq"><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><b>Email #13</b> shows that Silver wrote to Chu’s Chief of Staff in a December 10, 2010, email: “since Aldy [<i>White House</i> staff Joe Aldy] personally promised the edf management group [one of the sponsors of the Unistar loan guarantee project] that he would lead an interagency review of this topic, we should tell him that he should be the one to call and deliver the news.”</span></span><br /> <br /> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><b><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">Email</span></span> #14</b>: “there has been a commitment from S1 [Secretary Chu] to Steny Hoyer on this.”</span></span><br /> <br /> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><b><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">Email</span></span> #15</b>: “Just came down from the Secretary’s office. He is adamant that this transaction is going to OMB by the end of the day.”</span></span></blockquote><p><br /> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">LPO Credit Advisor Jim McCrea (possibly the source of this massive email leak, as his name is one of the most consistent in the email text), had hesitation about the project, stating in</span></span> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><b><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">Email</span></span> #16</b>: “Ordinarily, over an issue like this, I would refuse to sign the credit paper and refuse to send it to OMB tomorrow but given the direct order I was personally given by S1[Secretary Chu]…”</span></span><br /> <br /> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">Didn’t someone say the loans were not politically motivated and were based solely on merit? Oh, yes, it was the President who said: “they have nothing to do with politics.”</span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear:both;text-align:center;"><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"> </span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear:both;text-align:center;"><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DmqVHeagGrc/UJfNXRB4OvI/AAAAAAAABqg/96iSoeOGrpA/s1600/jonathansilver-cropped-proto-custom_28.jpg" style="clear:left;float:left;margin-bottom:1em;margin-right:1em;"><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DmqVHeagGrc/UJfNXRB4OvI/AAAAAAAABqg/96iSoeOGrpA/s320/jonathansilver-cropped-proto-custom_28.jpg" border="0" height="176" width="320" alt="jonathansilver-cropped-proto-custom_28.jpg" /></a></span></span></div><p><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><b>Jonathan Silver, Former Executive Director of the Loan Program Office</b></span></span><br /> <br /> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">Silver (<a href="http://washingtonexaminer.com/emails-show-obama-admin-used-doe-loan-money-to-help-harry-reids-2010-campaign/article/2512249#.UJfpuIXdtJM">reported</a> to be an Obama bundler and Democratic donor) resigned in early October 2011, amidst the Solyndra scandal. His claim that loan reviews took place over “several years” and that loans were not “given to friends” is perjurious.</span></span><br /> <br /> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">First, the loans couldn’t have been reviewed over “several years.” Obama wasn’t President until January 2009. The Stimulus funds were made available in February 2009. And<span style="font-size:small;">, the</span></span></span> <a href="http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/business/companies/solyndra/index.html"><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><span style="font-size:small;"><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">Solyndra</span></span></span></span></span></a> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><span style="font-size:small;"><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><a href="http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/business/companies/solyndra/index.html">$528 million loan guarantee</a> (September 2009) was the Obama administration’s first</span></span></span>,</span></span> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">as part of the 2009 stimulus package. Solyndra was also the first company to go bankrupt in September 2011</span></span><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">. Clearly, there was no “several years” in there.</span></span><br /> <br /> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">While logic and simple math tell us that the loans were not reviewed over “several years,” the emails prove the rushed process. In the 350+ page <a href="http://oversight.house.gov/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/Appendix-II.pdf"><u>Appendix II</u></a>, the very first email is from McCrea to Silver (dated <span style="font-size:small;">J<span style="font-size:small;">u</span>ne 15, 2010)</span>—subject line: 28 day clock. In it he complains about things being rushed. He opens with “I do not have a good sense of why the DOE and OMB agreed to a 28 day clock <span style="font-size:small;">following Solyndra...</span>” Though by the end of the page-long email, McCrea seems to concede: “I am not sure that the 28 day process is really as much of a constraint as it might appear at first glance.”</span></span><br /> <br /> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">Again, <a href="http://finance.townhall.com/columnists/maritanoon/2012/07/06/more_obama_green_energy_corruption/page/full/"><u>we covered</u></a> Silver’s involvement with many key players including John Woolard, CEO of BrightSource Energy. Silver is very <a href="http://greencorruption.blogspot.com/2012/07/recent-oversight-hearing-reveals-shady.html#.UJQZHYXdtJN"><u>well connected</u></a>, having served in the Clinton Administration, he parties with Al Gore, was a frequent White House visitor and participated in meetings with Chief of Staff Bill Daley. Silver used his personal email account to conduct DOE business. But there is no hard proof there.</span></span><br /> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"> <span style="background-color:#FFFFFF;"> </span></span></span><br /> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><span style="background-color:#FFFFFF;"><span style="background-color:#FFFFFF;"><i>The following eight para<span style="font-size:small;">graphs</span> is a revision <span style="font-size:small;">from</span> our original post with additional information</i>: </span></span></span></span><br /> <br /> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><span style="background-color:#FFFFFF;">Also found in Appendix II, early on (December 2009), way before the DOE finalized the $1.6 billion loan guarantee for <span class="yiv760876490mark" id="yiv760876490misspell-58">BrightSource</span> Energy (<a href="https://lpo.energy.gov/?p=4344">April 2011</a>), we find that there was a <span style="font-style:italic;">strong push</span> by Silver and others inside and close to the energy department in getting <i>this</i> loan approved . </span></span></span></p><div class="yiv760876490MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><span style="background-color:#FFFFFF;"> </span></span></span></div><p><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">We find a very suspicious email exchange about BrightSource <a href="http://cleaninvest.wordpress.com/2009/08/10/brightsource-energy/">that included</a> CEO Woolard, Joshua Bar-Lev, Vice President, Regulatory Affairs for BrightSource, and the lobbying firm representing BrightSource, <a href="http://www.opensecrets.org/revolving/indus.php?id=15291">McBee Strategic Consulting</a> –– as well as <span style="background-color:#FFFFFF;">some unknown "energy-Democrat-tied participants": </span></span></span></p><ul><li><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><a href="http://www.mcbeestrategic.com/portfolio/steve-mcbee/">Steve McBee</a></span></span></li><li><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><a href="http://www.mcbeestrategic.com/portfolio/jeff-markey/">Jeff Markey </a></span></span></li><li><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><span style="background-color:#FFFFFF;"><a href="http://www.wilsoncenter.org/staff/robert-simon#">Robert Simon</a></span></span></span></li><li><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><a href="http://www.cantwell.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=a1a00a4a-0168-432a-99c2-71a990ce1d6b">Angela Becker-Dippman</a> </span></span></li><li><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><a href="http://www1.eere.energy.gov/office_eere/m/oe_bio_carr.html">Michael Carr</a> </span></span></li><li><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><a href="http://vhstrategies.com/v/our-team#post-unit-11">Stephen Ward</a></span></span></li><li><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><a href="http://www1.eere.energy.gov/wip/solutioncenter/webcasts/eecbg_webex_012110.html">Matt Brown</a> </span></span></li><li><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><a href="http://www.thirdway.org/staff/151">Gabe Horwitz</a></span></span></li></ul><p><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">We discovered that in 2009, Steve McBee alerted the masses with the following<span style="font-size:small;">...</span></span></span></p><blockquote class="tr_bq"><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><span style="font-size:small;"> </span>"Wanted to let you know that the BrightSource application appears to moving apace at OMB and has a fighting chance of getting over to DOE..." "DOE is another story. We are hearing that despite a strong push by Silver, Spinner, Rogers and others internally, the process is getting sideways by any number of bureaucratic hold ups and there is now real potential for consideration of the project to slip until next year...[or"redeployed to China]" "ANYTHING you guys would be willing to do with DOE in terms of moving the process would be deeply appreciated."</span></span> <br /></blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">Joshua Bar-Lev in response says, "Do you all think we should have <b>vantage point</b> insist on mtg with chu or silver or rodgers? Should John and I try to fly out for something similar? Looking for some game changer but perhaps we’ve done all we could. Is dc shut down by the snow or is there some impact we could make? Joshua"</span></span></blockquote><p><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><b>NOTE:</b> We've covered Silver, <a href="http://greencorruption.blogspot.com/2012/09/obamas-green-cronies-made-dnc-cameo.html#.UJfi2YXdtJM">Steve Spinner</a> and Matt Rogers (all former DOE advisors) in previous posts, as well as <a href="http://greencorruption.blogspot.com/2012/07/recent-oversight-hearing-reveals-shady.html#.UJfiZYXdtJM">Silver's "shady email practices</a>." The “DOE Insiders," where plenty of “VC Guys” and “Gore Acolytes” held key positions –– a dozen on my radar, where at least a dozen on the "green corruption" radar, including these three. </span></span><br /> <br /> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><span style="font-size:small;"><i>Time out for a min</i><span style="font-size:small;"><i>ute</i>...</span></span>as noted during <a href="http://oversight.house.gov/hearing/the-administrations-bet-on-abound-solar-assessing-the-costs-to-the-american-taxpayers/">Silver's testimony this past July</a>, he made this denial: “...as I say, almost nobody that I am aware of in the Loan Program even knew who the individuals were who had invested, either directly or indirectly into these companies.” </span></span><br /> <br /> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">So the question remains, if Silver nor <i>anyone</i> else knew, why would anyone seek help from Vantage Point? Who knows? But what <i>we</i> do know is that <a href="http://www.randpaul2010.com/2012/01/senator-paul-amendment-bars-revolving-door-corruption-in-federal-loans/"><u>Vantage Point Partners</u></a> is the majority stakeholder in BrightSource, and Sanjay Wagle was a <a href="http://www.greenbiz.com/video/2009/02/03/president-obama-and-green-economy">principle</a>. Wagle just so happens to be the “renewable energy grants adviser” at the DOE under Secretary Chu.</span></span> <br /> <br /> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">While we know that Silver had cozy relationships with quite a few of those seeking green-energy funding <span style="font-size:small;">(like Al Gore and <span style="font-size:small;">Woolard)<span style="font-size:small;">,</span></span></span> the <span style="font-size:small;">following</span> emails confirm that lobbying the White House and the Vice President’s office achieves results, not only with getting a loan approved, but clearing obstacles with the Department of Interior (DOI) that put their entire billion-dollar project at risk.</span></span></p><blockquote class="tr_bq"><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><b>Email #5</b>, drafted by Bright Source CEO John Woolard for then-Board Chairman John Bryson to send to then-White House Chief of Staff Bill Daley: “This project is now at significant risk due to delays in permitting at the Department of Interior…”</span></span><br /> <br /> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><b><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">Email</span></span> #6</b>, from Wollard stated: “we are making good progress in DC. Whitehouse [sic] does seem to be very focused on this issue, in fact it is being elevated through the office of political affairs as well as VP Bidens- so we are starting to get them focused on the massive political risk- it helps that Bloomberg called Ivanpah ‘Obama’s energy project’ so it does have their attention.”</span></span><br /> <br /> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><b><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">Email</span></span> #7</b>, two weeks later, BrightSource got what it wanted: “The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service issued their revised Biological Opinion, prompting the Bureau of Land Management to issue a new notice to proceed allowing continued construction at Ivanpah units 2 and 3.”</span></span></blockquote><p><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">The BrightSource case reeks of political connections, yet we are supposed to believe the loans “had nothing to do with politics.”</span></span><br /> <br /> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><b>Joe Biden, Vice President</b></span></span><br /> <br /> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">Biden’s denial comes from his one debate of this campaign season, about which <a href="http://www.realclearmarkets.com/authors/diana_furchtgott-roth/"><u>Diana Furchtgott-Roth</u></a> writes for <a href="http://www.realclearmarkets.com/articles/2012/10/16/biden_fibbed_green_cronyism_is_alive_and_well_99939.html"><u>Real Clear Markets</u></a>: “In Thursday's vice presidential debate, Joe Biden denied any ‘cronyism’ in the award of Energy Department grants and loan guarantees to encourage the development of renewable energy. Plus, he asserted that government-assisted green energy projects had a better ‘batting average’ than do projects backed by investment bankers. Just one problem: Neither of Biden's assertions was true. Plus, the Vice President himself had a role in the cronyism.”</span></span></p><blockquote class="tr_bq"><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><b>Email #6</b>, proves her point: “…It is being elevated through the office of political affairs as well as VP Bidens…”</span></span></blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">Then there is</span></span> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><b><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">Email</span></span> #4</b>: “Pressure is on real heavy on SF [Shepherds Flat] due to interest from VP.” Additionally, as we addressed, though not revealed in the emails, Bernie Toon, who served then-Senator Biden as his Chief of Staff, <a href="http://greencorruption.blogspot.com/2012/07/shining-light-on-brightsource-energys.html#.UJQlS4XdtJM"><u>became a lobbyist</u></a> for BrightSource Energy.</span></span></blockquote><p><br /> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><b>The White House and President Barack Obama</b></span></span><br /> <br /> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">President Obama did keep himself somewhat isolated—having made fewer denials and being involved in fewer emails, however, he cannot be omitted from the discussion, as he was clearly party to the loan approvals. Plus, the emails show that DOE officials were pressured by the political interests at stake.</span></span></p><blockquote class="tr_bq"><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><b>Email #1</b>, from McCrea to Silver: “I am growing increasingly worried about a fast track process imposed on us at the POTUS level based on this chaotic process that we are undergoing…by designing the fast track process and having it approved at the POTUS level (which is an absolute waste of his time!) it legitimizes every element and it becomes embedded like the 55% recovery rate which also was imposed by POTUS.”</span></span></blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><b><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">Email</span></span> #2</b>, from David Schmitzer, DOE LPO Director of Loan Origination to McCrea: “Jonathan just said at our staff meeting that, opposite the message received on Thursday, AREVA is now a ‘go” (seems on Friday POTUS himself approved moving it ahead).”</span></span></blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><b><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">Email</span></span> #3</b>, from Silver to McCrea, encouraging him to remind a Treasury official of White House interest in now bankrupt Abound Solar: “You better let him know that WH wants to move Abound forward. Policy will have to wait unless they have a specific policy problem with abound.”</span></span></blockquote><p><br /> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">Despite Obama’s claim that the decisions regarding the loans had “nothing to do with politics,” it is clear that they had everything to do with politics—and not just his own. Loans were used to <a href="http://washingtonexaminer.com/emails-show-obama-admin-used-doe-loan-money-to-help-harry-reids-2010-campaign/article/2512249#.UJP-w4XdtJN"><u>bolster Senator Reid’s re-election</u></a> chances in the tight 2010 race.</span></span></p><blockquote class="tr_bq"><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><b>Email #8</b>, McCrea wrote: “Since this is not going to go into the DOE, and just to be clear, the translation is: Reid may be desperate. WH may want to help. Short term considerations may be more important than longer term considerations and what’s a billion anyhow?”</span></span></blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><b><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">Email</span></span> #9</b>, Silver wrote: “I need some stats on how many projects we have funded or have in DD [due diligence] as a percentage of totals. Reid is constantly hit at home for not bringing in the federal dollars.”</span></span></blockquote><p><br /> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">If all of this were a novel, or better yet a dramatic feature film, we’d find it most entertaining. We’d leave the theater shaking our heads at the gall of the movie’s starring actor. Instead, this full-color story (<i>White</i> House, <i>green</i> energy, <i>Silver</i> connections) leads to <i>red</i> ink—money borrowed from China that the US taxpayer will be paying back for generations. </span></span><br /> <br /> <span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">The coercion, corruption, cronyism and, cover up of the President's pet projects is really a horror flick, after all, the emails were released on Halloween. Each one of us is a victim of an expensive trick.</span></span></p><p></p><p><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><span style="font-size:small;"><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">Article first presented at Townhall.com written by columnist Marita K. Noon,</span> <span style="font-size:small;"><a href="http://finance.townhall.com/columnists/maritanoon/2012/11/04/busting_open_energys_den_of_deception">Busting Open Energy's Den of Deception</a>, November 4, 2012 –– as a follow up to our BREAKING this story on October 31, 2012:</span></span><br /></span></span></span></span></span></p><ul><li><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><a href="http://finance.townhall.com/columnists/maritanoon/2012/11/01/emails_catch_white_house_lie_on_greenenergy_loans">Emails Catch White House Lie on Green-Energy Loans</a></span></span></li><li><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><a href="http://greencorruption.blogspot.com/2012/11/breaking-newly-released-house-oversight.html">BREAKING: Newly Released House Oversight Emails Incriminate White House in Green-Energy Loan Lies,</a> where the cronyism evidence is expanded upon.</span></span></li></ul><p><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><span style="font-size:small;"><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;"><span style="font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size:small;">Research by Christine Lakatos THE <a href="http://greencorruption.blogspot.com/">Green</a> <a href="http://greencorruption.blogspot.com/">Corruption</a> blogger.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></p><p></p></div>BREAKING: Newly Released House Oversight Emails Incriminate White House in Green-Energy Loan Lieshttps://patriotcommandcenter.org/profiles/blogs/breaking-newly-released-house-oversight-emails-incriminate-white2012-11-02T02:10:17.000Z2012-11-02T02:10:17.000ZChristine Lakatoshttps://patriotcommandcenter.org/members/ChristineLakatos<div><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3">When he is confronted about the failed green-energy loan program, President Obama deflects blame—pointing to “career bureaucrats” in the Department of Energy (DOE) who supposedly approved the loans that have become an embarrassment to the White House. </font></font></p><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"> </font></font></p><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"><iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/cZDDgwNvGO0?wmode=opaque" frameborder="0"></iframe></font></font></p><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"><br /></font><font size="3">For months, along with researcher <a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=4761811945465851288"><u>Christine Lakatos</u></a>, I’ve been reporting on, first, the junk-bond rated projects (such as Solyndra) that received fast-tracked approval from the DOE and, then the failed and troubled stimulus funded companies. Solyndra was just the tip of the iceberg. </font></font></p><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><br /></font> <font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3">Embarrassment after embarrassment has come to light as the projects touted as the hope for America’s future have filed for bankruptcy, sent money and jobs overseas, and faced technical difficulties.</font></font></p><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"><br /></font><font size="3">According to <a href="http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-12-157"><font class="yshortcuts">GAO March 2012 statistics</font></a> (and emphasized in the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tx0elJ3FNEM&feature=plcp"><font class="yshortcuts">June 19th Congressional hearing</font></a>), "For the 460 applications to the Loan Guarantee Program (LGP), DOE has made loan guarantees for 7 percent and committed to an additional 2 percent."</font></font></p><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"><br /></font><font size="3">And of the 26 projects that got the loans, 22 were junk-bond rated—meaning private investors wouldn’t fund them. So why did we, the taxpayers?</font></font></p><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"><br /></font><font size="3">Of the 26 loans issued through just the 1705 LGP to 21 firms, virtually all of them have <i>meaningful</i> political ties (bundlers, donors, supporters, etc). Our research showed that at least 90% of the projects had close ties to the White House and other high ranking Democrats. Despite the obvious connection, President Obama has repeatedly denied any involvement—preferring to blame “career bureaucrats” who could take the fall with no political consequence.</font></font></p><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"><br /></font><font size="3">In March, Energy Secretary Steven Chu, testified that, “We looked at the loans on their own merits.” Also, back in November 2011, he said: “I am aware of no communication from White House to Department of Energy saying to make the loan or to restructure.”</font></font></p><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"><br /></font><font size="3">Just last week, on October 26, President Obama affirmed Chu’s position when he said: “Decisions made in the loan program office are decisions, by the way, that are made by the Department of Energy, they have nothing to do with politics.”</font></font></p><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"><br /></font><font size="3">However, late Wednesday, the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform released a <a href="http://oversight.house.gov/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/2012-10-31-Memo-on-DOE-Loan-Guarantee-Program-Oversight.pdf"><u>new report</u></a> of “over 150 emails that contradict statements by the President, Secretary Chu, and White House and DOE officials.” The emails reveal a series of questionable practices, including coercion, cronyism and, cover ups.</font></font></p><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"><br /></font><font size="3">The Committee has been asking for the emails and additional testimony since the Solyndra story broke in September of 2011, but the DOE has been refusing to cooperate. Emails were finally leaked from former DOE employees. Some of the incriminating evidence includes the following:</font></font></p><div><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"> </font></font></p></div><ol><li><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3">From an email dated March 1, 2010 from David Schmitzer, DOE LPO Director of Loan <br />Origination to LPO Credit Advisor McCrea and others: “Jonathan just said at our staff meeting that, opposite the message received on Thursday, <b><u>AREVA</u></b> is now a “go” (seems on Friday POTUS himself approved moving it ahead).”</font></font></li><li><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3">From an email dated June 25, 2010, LPO Executive Director Jonathan Silver encourages LPO Credit Advisor Jim McCrea to remind a Treasury official of White House Interest in now bankrupt <u><b>Abound Solar</b></u>: "You better let him know that WH wants to move Abound forward. Policy will have to wait unless they have a specific policy problem with abound.”</font></font></li><li><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3">From an email dated September 9, 2010 from LPO Credit Advisor McCrea to <br />DOE contractor Brian Oakley: "Pressure is on real heavy on SF [<u><b>Shepherds Flat</b></u>] due to interest from VP.”</font></font></li></ol><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3">These emails are just a snippet of the 150 emails we are reviewing as a part of the just-released report. We have reported on each of the projects listed above and will report further.</font></font></p><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"><br /></font><font size="3">We know that the Obama Administration operates from a “culture of corruption,” now we see that there is also a culture of deception within the White House walls. The White House green lies are bigger than innocent, little white lies<font size="3">;</font> they are expensive green lies that have produced $34.7 billion in red ink for the taxpayers.</font></font></p><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"><br /></font><font size="3">The Obama green energy program is the largest, most expensive, and deceptive case of crony capitalism in American history.</font></font></p><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"> </font></font></p><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"><b>Back Story</b></font></font></p><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"><br /></font><font size="3">As I was busy being "proud of myself" for making it on The Daily Caller (October 30th) <a href="http://dailycaller.com/2012/10/30/as-many-as-fifty-obama-backed-green-energy-companies-bankrupt-or-troubled/">with a "hit" piece featuring my</a> "Obama Green-Energy Failures," I heard <a href="http://dailycaller.com/2012/10/31/gingrich-rumor-says-networks-have-white-house-emails-telling-counterterrorism-group-to-stand-down-on-benghazi-rescue/">Newt Gingrich</a> "On the Record with Greta Van Susteren” (Fox News Channel). Lo and behold, Gingrich had this to say, after noting that the rumor [more incriminating Benghazi emails were forthcoming], if true, would have a substantial impact on the presidential election, Gingrich pointed to another possible “October surprise” in the coming days.</font></font></p><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"><br /></font><font size="3">“The other big story, I think, that is going to break is on corruption and extraordinary waste in the solar power grants and direct involvement by the Obama White House, including the president, in the solar panel grants involving billions of dollars, and I suspect that’s going to break Wednesday and Thursday of this week,” Gingrich added.</font></font></p><div><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"> </font></font></p></div><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3">The next day, I received the above bombshell Intel in my inbox around 4:30 PM, and I was immediately in contact with Marita via emails, text, and on the phone –– thus we threw up this breaking news at Townhall.com [<a href="http://finance.townhall.com/columnists/maritanoon/2012/11/01/emails_catch_white_house_lie_on_greenenergy_loans/page/full/">Emails Catch White House Lie on Green-Energy Loans]</a>, divulging just <font class="messageBody"><font class="userContent">a snippet of data into the 150 internal emails released by the House Oversight Committee on October 31, 2012:</font></font> <a href="http://oversight.house.gov/release/emails-contradict-president-obama-administration-officials-on-energy-dept-loan-program/">Emails Contradict President Obama, Administration Officials on Energy Dept. Loan Program.</a></font></font></p><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"> </font></font></p><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"><b>Cronyism*</b></font></font></p><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><br /></font> <font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3">Besides the obvious contradictions, coercion, and cover up, since April this year, we had already chronicled <font size="3">many</font> of the green-energy, crony-corruption stories –– the driving forces behind the majority of the loans that flew out of the DOE. In fact the three firms/projects found in the "smoking gun" emails released by the House Oversight Committee –– that we decided to highlight in our breaking story –– we had already reported on since April 2012.</font></font></p><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"> </font></font></p><div><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"><a href="http://www.areva.com/EN/solar-220/areva-solar.html"><b>AREVA</b></a><b> acquired Ausra Inc.</b></font><font size="3">* –– $2 billion (<i>covered in my <a href="http://blogcritics.org/politics/article/obamas-political-payback-green-corruption-part1/">2010 Green Corruption</a> <a href="http://blogcritics.org/politics/article/obamas-political-payback-green-corruption-part1/">piece</a>, and then again</i></font> <font size="3"><i>October 7, 2012 with Marita in our</i></font> <font size="3"><i><a href="http://finance.townhall.com/columnists/maritanoon/2012/10/07/romney_to_obama_you_pick_the_losers">Romney to Obama: “You Pick the Losers."</a> column</i><b>) </b> </font></font></p></div><div><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"><br /></font><font size="3">In March 2010, this Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers (KPCB) <a href="http://www.kpcb.com/companies/ausra">investment</a> that “develops and deploys utility-scale solar technologies,” was <a href="http://www.ausra.com/news/releases/100302.html">acquired by AREVA Inc</a>, the French state-owned nuclear giant. Two months later, in May of 2010, <a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=4761811945465851288">the DOE offered</a> AREVA Enrichment Services, LLC a conditional commitment for a $2 billion loan guarantee (from the 1703 LGP) to support the Eagle Rock Enrichment Facility in Idaho Falls, Idaho. As <a href="http://stateimpact.npr.org/idaho/2011/12/13/governor-otter-says-arevas-idaho-nuke-facility-is-moving-forward/">rumors of</a> AREVA “suspending its Idaho uranium enrichment plant” circulated in late 2011, AREVA CEO Luc Oursel did confirm: “the company has been hit by financial problems that will affect the Eagle Rock Enrichment Facility and others worldwide.” Further, according to John Stossel's <a href="http://www.foxbusiness.com/on-air/stossel/blog/2012/07/03/green-energy-myth">Green Energy Myth</a> July 2012 tally, “Shareholders of AREVA <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/quote/AREVA:FP">lost over 60% of their money</a> last year [2011]. Why did we <i>enrich</i></font> <font size="3">the French? Who knows, but it's awfully fishy when we find our <a href="http://blogcritics.org/politics/article/president-obamas-green-cronies-made-dnc/page-3/">usual green cronyism suspects</a> hovering around "government green" like vultures—Kleiner Perkins, where John Doerr and Al Gore are both partners and 2008 Obama supporters. Meanwhile billionaire John Doerr –– considered "<a href="http://nymag.com/daily/intel/2011/10/obama_fisker_finland_jobs.html">a very big-ticket Obama donor</a>" by </font><font size="3"><i>New York Magazine ––</i></font> <font size="3">influenced the 2009-stimulus, sits on the president's job council, and in February 2011 <a href="http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Obama-dines-with-tech-stars-of-Silicon-Valley-2529458.php">hosted</a> a star-studded billionaire Silicon Valley dinner for the president. He just so happened to rake in billions of stimulus money for his <a href="http://www.kpcb.com/companies">KPCB clean-energy portfolio</a>, including Fisker Automotive listed above. Other <a href="http://www.ausra.com/news/releases/090421.html">investors in Ausra</a> close to Obama are Khosla Ventures and Gore's Generation Investment Management firm, but let's leave those cans of worms closed for now. </font></font></p></div><div><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"><br /></font> <font size="3"><b> Ausra Connections:</b></font></font></p></div><ul><li><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3">As mentioned Kleiner Perkins as well as Al Gore's Generation Investment Management firm <a href="http://finance.townhall.com/columnists/maritanoon/2012/08/04/how_democrats_say_crony_corruption_in_spanish_abengoa/page/full/">(GIM) also tied to</a> the Spanish company <a href="http://www.abengoa.es/corp/web/en/negocio/energia/">Abengoa</a> that received more than $2.8 billion in loans and grants—making them the second largest recipient of the $16 billion doled out through the DOE 1705 loan guarantee program.</font></font></li><li><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"><a href="http://www.khoslaventures.com/sustainability.html">Khosla Ventures,</a> where billionaire Vinod Kholsa, another big VC winner in the green taxpayer funded giveaway, that includes Ausra (listed here), Coskata that snagged a $250 million DOE loan as well as Nordic WindPower (also a Goldman Sachs <a href="http://venturebeat.com/2007/10/02/nordic-windpower-gets-significant-investment-from-goldman-sachs/">investment</a>) for $16 million, plus more. Vinod Khosla, an <a href="http://www.kpcb.com/team/index.php?all">affiliated partner</a> of Kleiner Perkins, whose firm <a href="http://www.khoslaventures.com/khosla/cleantech.html">Khosla Ventures</a> has also invested in some of the same companies as <a href="http://www.kpcb.com/portfolio/portfolio.php?greentech">Kleiner Perkins</a>, which include; <a href="http://www.altarockenergy.com/media.html">AltaRock Energy Inc.</a>, $25 million grant from the stimulus; <a href="http://www.greentechmedia.com/green-light/post/doe-sinks-564m-into-biorefineries/">Amyris Biotechnologies</a>, $25 million grant from the stimulus; and <a href="http://www.mascoma.com/pages/sub_business06.php">Mascoma Corporation</a> has received state and federal grants from the DOE since 2006, totaling over $170 million and as recent as 2008, received another <a href="http://www.mascoma.com/pages/sub_media.php">$49.5 million in funding</a> from the DOE and the state of Michigan. According to Scwheizer's <i>Throw Them All Out</i></font><font size="3">, "Kholsa had been the head of Obama's India Policy Team during the 2008 election and contributed to Democratic candidates. </font></font></li></ul><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"><br /></font><font size="3"><br /></font></font></p><div><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"><b>Abound Solar</b>* (<i>covered in <a href="http://blogcritics.org/politics/article/recent-oversight-hearing-continued-abound-solar/">my July 25, 2012</a> <a href="http://blogcritics.org/politics/article/recent-oversight-hearing-continued-abound-solar/">p</a><a href="http://blogcritics.org/politics/article/recent-oversight-hearing-continued-abound-solar/">iece</a>, and then again with Marita in our</i></font> <font size="3"><i>September 30, 2012</i> <i><a href="http://finance.townhall.com/columnists/maritanoon/2012/09/30/obama_never_admits_green_failure">Obama Never Admits Green Failure</a></i> <i>column</i><b><i>)</i></b></font></font></p></div><div><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"><b> </b> <br /></font></font></p></div><div><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3">Received part of a $60 million grant under the Bush administration, and was awarded a $400 million loan under Obama in December of 2010. Abound was awarded a $9.2-million loan from the Export-Import Bank in July 2011. Bankrupt: <a href="http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-06-28/abound-solar-to-close-as-early-as-today-greentech-media-says"><u>June 2012</u></a></font></font></p></div><div><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"> </font></font></p></div><div><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3">President Obama, in <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3s1OP5eqWKY&feature=player_embedded"><u>July 2010</u></a>, praised Abound Solar, which was to make advanced solar panels in two locations: Colorado and Indiana. He believed these plants would be huge job creators: “2000 construction jobs and 1500 permanent jobs.” In December 2011, CEO Craig Witsoe called Abound Solar the “<a href="http://www.bizjournals.com/denver/print-edition/2011/12/16/abound-solar-boosts-production.html"><u>anti-Solyndra</u></a>” saying that his company “doing well and growing.” However, just months after that optimistic report, Abound Solar filed bankruptcy—blaming cheap imports from China. Todd Shepherd, an investigative reporter for Colorado Watchdog <a href="http://dailycaller.com/2012/07/03/bankrupt-colo-solar-firm-sticks-taxpayers-for-68-million-doomed-by-poor-quality/"><u>found</u></a> that “Abound’s problems appear to have been rooted in the quality of its own products, the competitiveness of the business model, and its inability to retain top talent.”</font></font></p></div><div><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"> </font></font></p><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3">Abound Solar</font> <font size="3"><b>UPDATES</b></font></font></p></div><ul><li><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"><b>October 8, 2012:</b> <a href="http://michellemalkin.com/2012/10/08/bankrupt-green-loan-lose-abound-solar-under-investigation-in-colorado/">Bankrupt green loan loser Abound Solar now under investigation in Colorado</a> –– Michelle Malkin <b> </b></font></font></li><li><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"><b>October 11, 2012:</b> <a href="http://blog.heritage.org/2012/10/11/house-committee-launches-document-probe-into-doe-abound-solar/">House Committee Launches Document Probe Into DOE, Abound Solar</a> –– The Heritage Foundation <b>October 25, 2012</b>: <a href="http://dailycaller.com/2012/10/25/colorado-officials-continue-abound-solar-fraud-investigation/">Colorado officials continue Abound Solar fraud investigation</a> –– The Daily Caller </font></font></li><li><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"><b>October 27, 2012:</b> <a href="http://completecolorado.com/stories/AboundEmails.html">EMAILS SHOW WHITE HOUSE DROVE FAILED GREEN-LOAN IN COLORADO</a> –– The Complete Colorado by Todd Shepherd </font></font></li><li><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"><b>October 29, 2012</b><b>:</b> <a href="http://nlpc.org/stories/2012/10/29/emails-show-white-house-exerted-pressure-doe-loan-abound-solar">Emails Show White House Exerted Pressure for DOE Loan to Abound Solar</a> <b>––</b> National Legal and Policy Center</font></font></li></ul><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"><b> </b></font></font></p><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"><b>Abound <a href="http://blogcritics.org/politics/article/recent-oversight-hearing-continued-abound-solar/">Connections</a>: </b> <br /><font color="#FF0000"><font color="#000000"><font>Those that gained financially and politically:</font></font></font></font></font></p><ul><li><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"><font color="#FF0000"><font color="#000000"><font>2008 billionaire heiress Pat Stryker, early investor in Abound (then AVA); 2008 Obama bundler and Democrat donor (and Obama donor for 2012)</font></font></font></font></font></li><li><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"><font>Democratic Congressman Paul Kanjorski’s nephew Russell</font></font></font></li><li><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"><font>Then-Colorado Democratic Congresswoman Betsy Markey (tied to cap-and-trade) </font></font></font></li><li><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"><font>At the state level, then Democratic Colorado Governor Bill Ritter strongly supported Abound Solar and its application for a DOE loan guarantee, gave letter to Secretary Chu.</font> </font></font></li><li><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3">Republican ties: Abound Solar is also backed by Invus Public Equities Advisors LLC, which was co-founded by Raymond Debbane, who has donated to Republican candidates including Representative Darrell Issa. Also, Abound, formerly known as AVA Solar won part of a $60 million grant under the Bush administration.</font></font></li></ul><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"><br /></font><font size="3"><b>Shepherds Flat*</b> (I covered in my July 2012 piece entitled, <a href="http://greencorruption.blogspot.com/2012/07/general-electric-making-bank-off-obamas.html#.UJLQR4XdtJM">General Electric Making “Bank” off Obama's “Green” Stimulus Money; Over $3 Billion and Counting</a>) </font></font></p><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><br /></font> <font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3">EXCERPT: </font></font></p><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"><b>General Electric, CEO Jeffrey Immelt, Chair of Obama’s Job Council and the Billions They Raked in Through the 2009 Obama Stimulus Package </b><br /><b><br /></b>Whereas General Electric (GE) is a heavy donor to</font> <font size="3"><a href="http://www.opensecrets.org/orgs/summary.php?id=D000000125">both</a> Republicans and Democrats, and Immelt himself "plays the role of typical corporate donor who <a href="http://www.politico.com/blogs/davidcatanese/0111/Immelts_GOP_donations.html">hedges his bets</a> on both sides of the fence," in 2008, GE <a href="http://www.opensecrets.org/pres08/contrib.php?cid=N00009638">gave the Obama campaign $529,855</a>, marking them a top Obama donor. Nevertheless, GE is a major player on the clean-energy scene as well as in this green energy scheme. Even <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/12/business/energy-environment/a-cornucopia-of-help-for-renewable-energy.html?pagewanted=all">The New York Times</a> recognized GE’s “green power,” noting that in 2009, GE lobbied Congress to help expand the “clean-energy subsidy programs, and it now profits from every aspect of the boom in renewable-power plant construction,” including “hundreds of millions in contracts to sell its turbines to wind plants built with public subsidies.” In fact, you'll be "<a href="http://investigativereportingworkshop.org/investigations/wind-energy-funds-going-overseas/story/stimulus-wind-grants/">blown away</a>" by the billions of "wind energy grants" that <i>blew out</i> of the stimulus package back in February 2010, of which GE is contracted to at least 26% of them as the "Turbine Manufacturer."<br /><br /> In late 2009,</font> <font size="3"><a href="http://gigaom.com/cleantech/the-tech-vendors-that-will-cash-in-on-the-smart-grid-stimulus-funds/">it was reported</a> that GE became "one of the newer smart meter players," and that they "had been <a href="http://www.gereports.com/building-a-smarter-grid-one-customer-at-a-time/">working with utility</a> Oklahoma Gas & Electric on a 6,600 smart meter trial, and had procured <a href="http://www.genewscenter.com/content/detail.aspx?releaseid=6374&newsareaid=2">"a contract with Pepco Holdings (PHI)</a>," which <a href="http://www.pepcoholdings.com/about/news/archives/2010/article.aspx?cid=1398">received</a> Smart Grid Investment Grants totaling $168 million. GE also has a big contract with <a href="http://gigaom.com/cleantech/smart-grid-miami-fpl-ge-cisco-silver-spring-rolling-out-1m-smart-meters/">Florida Power and Light</a>," also <a href="http://gigaom.com/cleantech/the-winners-and-losers-in-the-smart-grid-stimulus-funds/">the recipient</a> of a $200 million stimulus grant.<br /><br /> Yet, this is just the beginning of the GE "green bucks"...</font> <font size="3"><br /><br /> While</font> <font size="3"><a href="http://view.targetedvictoryemail.com/?j=fe8b15727d670d7b72&m=fe9315707360037b71&ls=fdf7167070670d7574157472&l=feca16717c66037d&s=fe2e177373620674761471&jb=ffcf14&ju=">a recent "news flash" was published</a> by the Republican National Committee, confirming via <a href="http://recovery.gov/">Recovery.gov</a> that "General Electric received over $1.2 billion worth of stimulus loan guarantees, awards, contracts and grants" (the majority of which were for renewable energy projects), they missed billions more. Two large 1705 loan guarantees that <a href="http://greencorruption.blogspot.com/2012/04/green-corruption-department-of-energy.html">I had outlined in April</a> of this year, as well as a forthcoming $490 million cash grant and a $54.6 million loan from the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA). Add in some smaller government subsidies and awards for a multitude of green projects, programs, and through some of their "<a href="http://www.energytechnologyventures.com/3-investments.html">green alliances</a>," that I found during my 2011 research, and GE's "green tab" exceeds $3 billion in direct (some indirectly) taxpayer cash, and counting. ;<br /><br /> Let's take a look at GE's two projects from the</font> <font size="3"><a href="https://lpo.energy.gov/?page_id=45">1705 Loan Guarantee Program</a>, both of which are included the DOE's risky investment portfolio.</font></font></p><ul><li><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3">1366 Technologies Inc, Rating B by Fitch, Sept 2011 –– $150 million</font></font></li><li><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3">Caithness Shepherds Flat, LLC –– Rating BBB- by Fitch; Oct 2010 for $1.04 billion (<a href="https://lpo.energy.gov/?page_id=1713">or $1.3 billion</a>)</font></font></li></ul><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3">GE sponsored the Caithness Shepherds Flat, and also supplied the project with 338 wind-turbines. On top of the $1.3 billion loan, the Caithness project is set to receive a <a href="http://www.nationalreview.com/articles/279802/america-s-worst-wind-energy-project-robert-bryce">cash grant of $490 million</a> from the Treasury Department once those turbines start turning.<br /><br /> Later,</font> <font size="3"><a href="http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Government/2012/04/05/obama-2012-and-google-your-privacy-diminished">another close associate</a> of, and big donor to the president <a href="http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20110418006332/en/Google-ITOCHU-Sumitomo-Join-GE-Developer-Caithness">invested in Caithness.</a> As uncovered by Peter Schweizer in his book, <i>Throw Them All Out</i>, "<a href="http://www.nationaljournal.com/magazine/google-s-tarnished-chrome-20110311?print=true">Google's</a> CEO at the time, Eric Schmidt, served as an informal advisor to President Obama.” Still, Schmidt, <a href="http://www.google.com/about/company/facts/management/">Google Executive Chairman</a>, was an <a href="http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0911/64005.html">Obama donor in 2008</a>, and since April 2009, <a href="http://www.whitehouse.gov/the_press_office/President-Obama-Announces-Members-of-Science-and-Technology-Advisory-Council">is a member</a> of the president's Science and Technology Advisory Council (PCAST). Interestingly, Google’s <a href="http://www.opensecrets.org/pres08/contrib.php?cid=N00009638">$814,540</a> contribution to Obama’s campaign made it the fifth largest donor in 2008. As of late, Google has aimed its "<a href="http://www.google.com/green/energy/investments/">search engines</a>" at green technology, many of which have received government "help" –– BrightSource, Solar City, Telsa Motors, and others, but we’ll stay focused on GE. <br /><br /> The House Oversight, March 2012</font> <font size="3"><a href="http://oversight.house.gov/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/FINAL-DOE-Loan-Guarantees-Report.pdf">investigation</a> reveals internal memos of concern over the fact that the Caithness Shepherds Flat project was receiving “an excessive amount of public subsidy (where grants, tax credits and loan guarantees provided 65% of the funding for the project), and that private parties did not have sufficient ‘skin in the game.’” <br /><br /> Further, it goes on to state, “Four months after the DOE approved the Caithness loan, President Obama named Jeff Immelt, the CEO of GE, as the Chairman of Obama’s Job Council” –– a council</font> <font size="3"><a href="http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2011/10/obama-jobs-council-stacked-with-democratic-donors/">stacked with Democratic donors</a>, and several Obama bundlers, both for the 2008 and 2012 campaigns. <br /><br /> It also discloses “General Electric’s broad access to loan guarantees,” and it gives a very illuminating account. “Since Immelt’s appointment as Chair of the Job Council, two additional government-backed transactions have occurred." "First the poorly rated 1366 Technologies, sponsored in part by GE, received a direct $150 million loan commitment from the DOE for its solar manufacturing plant." Second was the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) that loaned $54.6 million to Kansas City Southern Railway Company (KCSR) "to purchase thirty new General Electric ES44AC diesel-electric locomotives" –– a loan that raised red flags in the House investigation. </font></font></p><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><br /></font> <font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"><b>More to come...</b></font></font></p><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"><br /></font><font size="3">However, another incriminating factor that struck me in the</font> <font size="3"><font size="3"><a href="http://oversight.house.gov/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/2012-10-31-Memo-on-DOE-Loan-Guarantee-Program-Oversight.pdf"><u>new report</u></a></font></font> <font size="3"><font size="3"><font size="3">(memo) released</font> by</font> House Oversight is that "DOE officials were aware of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid’s tough reelection in 2010 and moved projects that were important to Senator Reid forward." </font></font></p><ul><li><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3">In a December 5 2009 email, Loan Program Office Senior Credit Advisor Jim McCrea forwarded an article about Senator Reid’s reelection campaign to LPO contractor Paul Barbian and stated: “Since this is not going to go into the DOE, and just to be clear, the translation is: Reid may be desperate. WH may want to help. Short term considerations may be more important than longer term considerations and what’s a billion anyhow?” </font></font></li><li><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"> In a May 4 2010 email, LPO Executive Director Jonathan Silver wrote in an email “I need some stats on how many projects we have funded or have in DD [due diligence] as a percentage of totals. Reid is constantly hit at home for not bringing in the federal dollars.”</font></font></li><li><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3">Throughout 2010 LPO emails indicate that projects in Nevada were prioritized because they were “high profile,” “tied to larger events,” or because they had Senator Reid’s support. These projects included the $343 million SWIP project (Email #10, attached), the $98.5 million Nevada Geothermal project (Email #11, attached), and the $737 million SolarReserve Tonopah project. </font></font></li></ul><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"> </font></font></p><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3">This is another part of the Green Corruption scandal brought to you by Marita and I in July 2012, <a href="http://finance.townhall.com/columnists/maritanoon/2012/07/14/senator_harry_reids_part_in_greenenergy_cronycorruption/page/full/">Senator Harry Reid’s Part in Green-Energy Crony-Corruption.</a> However, speaking of Jonathon Silver and Secretary Chu, they are both implicated in these newly released and damning email dumps –– both on my Green Corruption radar since 2010, along with at least a "<b>Dozen DOE Insiders</b>."</font></font> <font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><br /></font></p><table class="tr-caption-container" cellspacing="0"><tbody><tr><td></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption"></td></tr></tbody></table><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3">And in April 2012, Chu in my <a href="http://blogcritics.org/politics/article/green-corruption-department-of-energy-junk/">Green Corruption: Department of Energy “Junk Loans” and Cronyism</a>, noting that in a <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VRPPpm8FR70">gripping line of questioning</a>, Ohio Representative Jim Jordan confronted this issue head on during that same hearing where he pressed Secretary Chu on nine of the firms that received loans, revealing their political connections. Chu countered that the loans were based on merit. Yet Jordan was perplexed, “so if you weren’t helping your buddies, and you were basing your decisions on the merits of the loan, how do you explain the fact that 23 of 27 recipients of the loan guarantees were rated as junk status investments?” Jordan concluded, “If it wasn’t your political buddies, it had to be incompetence.”</font></font></p><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><br /></font> <font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3">At first glance, we have plenty more cronyism and corruption to piece together with these "smoking gun" emails (and we will), and 100's of more emails to read. Still, it would be a worthy endeavor to investigate if <a href="http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/solyndra-blame-bush-obama-officials/story?id=14513389#.UJLeLIXdtJM">Silver</a> or Chu <i>perjured themselves</i> (or any other CEO as well as any former or current DOE Official for that matter), during any of the (five) <a href="http://oversight.house.gov/release/emails-contradict-president-obama-administration-officials-on-energy-dept-loan-program/">House Oversight Committee</a> hearings that have been conducted since 2011 –– my hunch, yes!</font></font></p><p><font face="Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif"><font size="3"><br /></font><font size="3">Stay tuned...</font></font></p></div>