Obama Says He Has No Regrets About Solyndra Loan

WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama said Monday he has no regrets about granting a $528 million federal loan to Solyndra Inc., arguing it wasn't possible for the Department of Energy's loan-guarantee program to back winners every time.

"There are going to be some failures, and Solyndra's an example," Obama said in an interview with ABC's George Stephanopoulos.

China is pouring hundreds of billions of dollars into the solar market, the president noted on "Good Morning America" on Monday. For American renewable-energy companies to have a fair shot, he added, the DOE's program must help subsidize emerging technologies.

"Hindsight is always 20-20," said Obama of the administration's 2009 decision to give more than half a billion dollars in federal loans to Solyndra, the California solar company that laid off 1,100 workers and filed for bankruptcy last month. "It went through the regular review process and people felt that it was a good bet."

Many have cautioned that the drama around Solyndra is overblown. The Solyndra loan represents just 1.3 percent of the $39 billion in loans that the loan-guarantee program has generated thus far, and only around 3 percent of the total loan guarantees targeting the solar industry. The fact that Solyndra received up to $1 billion in private sector banking alone would suggest that leaders at the DOE weren't the only ones who saw promise in the technology.

But that hasn't discouraged the Obama administration's Republican critics, who argue the government should not be in the business of selecting clean energy winners and losers.

Internal documents released on Monday show that the administration had significant concerns about the Solyndra loan guarantee, though some officials at the DOE initially downplayed the warnings, arguing the solar company was in good financial health.

In particular, the emails highlight the reservations of DOE adviser Steve Westly, who said in an email to the White House that he was worried Solyndra could not "survive long-term," and urged the president to avoid embarrassment by reevaluating his decision to visit the now-bankrupt company.

The trip, Westly warned, "could haunt him in the next 18 months if Solyndra hits the wall, files for bankruptcy..."

On May 26, 2010, two days after receiving Westly's warning, the president visited Solyndra's headquarters in Fremont, Calif.

Comments

[Stockmanson]

04:26 PM on 10/11/2011

When the federal government subsidizes research and development that has been a productive thing. But it is quite another for it to finance the construction of a new start up manufacturing plant. Seems this administration carefully picked political appointees that so shared Obama's ideological vision of green energy they are willing to take any risk, make any investment, and accept any loss.

[sta123]

05:19 PM on 10/05/2011

The Obama administration’s Department of Energy was poised last summer to give Solyndra a second major taxpayer loan of $469 million, even as the company’s financial situation was growing more dire.

The Energy Department was actively pushing to provide the second loan guarantee to the troubled solar-panel manufacturer in April and May 2010, when Solyndra’s auditors warned the company was in danger of closing due to its rapidly mounting debts and expenses, according to complete e-mails just released by a House committee investigating the original loan.

[Genders]

11:40 AM on 10/05/2011

I'm not a fan of Obama's Reaganomics, trickle down, moderate republic politics, but he's mostly right about this.

Solyandra had an interesting idea, they built and installed 100MW of solar power at 5-10$ per Wp including bankruptcy, That price is within the range of the DOE official energy plan prices for solar pv. So what's the complaint?

Obviously the GOP/Tea anti republic Tories don't need a reason. They prefer war spending, which destroy much and creates nothing.

My complaint is Chu's Official 2009 DOE report that used old green energy costs, particularly , solar pv of 6-10$ per Wp, versus 2016 future fantasy PR number for new fossils and nukes.

I'm sure these were the numbers used to evaluate Solyandra. By those numbers it was great. but the truth is the market price for rooftop solar is 1-2$ per Wp. And that was the expected price based on the 3 decade long steady decrease in prices. The American company First Solar announced their sub 1$ Wp panels in 2009.

While the republic should invest in R&D, rooftop pv solar is now the cheapest electricity for million of roof owners, and we should be installing it using 90% of our solar energy money, and 10% for the new 40% efficiency solar panels research to get the price down. We need to set up a green bank for roof owners to get low interest loans like the bankster get from the FED(.004%? how about 1%?)

[Paula Sue Haswell Beatty]

10:33 AM on 10/05/2011

Problem here is that there was no dudelgence, done by Obama, he was told by many that this company was not a good bet, but went ahead with it any way, you don't gamble with some one eles's money, we need some one who has the common sense to do the right thing when venturing into new thing's, I know that we spend entirly too much money on the most profitable companies in the world, to try to get them to bring back manufacturing to the US and when the time is right and we have this new type of energy we can afford to stop this all together, now's not the time, look when your team has a bad season, like Obama's has you don't firer the team you firer the coaching staff and more improtantly the head coach, I say let's all do that and then maybe we can be more competive then china, and get this country back on it's feet, we just need true leadership that's all.

[ranhead]

08:04 AM on 10/05/2011

Of course he has no regrets. It's not his money. Same thing happened here in Mass with a solar company,

[Paula Sue Haswell Beatty]

10:19 AM on 10/05/2011

I made that same comment, just awhile ago, but it did not get on so I guess we are only looking for Obama support today.

[carleronn]

04:24 PM on 10/05/2011

lol, exactly

[Billybladerunner]

08:45 PM on 10/04/2011

US government and the Bible?

Over 4500 thousand years ago, Moses said to the children of Israel , "Pickup your shovels, mount your asses and your camels, and I will lead you to the Promised Land."

Nearly 75 years ago, In America, President Roosevelt's welfare program was, "Lay down your shovels, sit on your asses, and light up a Camel, this is the Promised Land."

Today, the Government has no shovels, has taxed all our asses, raised the price of camels and mortgaged the Promised Land!

I got so depressed thinking about how Ironic this is, I called The US Suicide Hotline. I had to press 1 for English and was connected to a call center in Pakistan . I told the man I was suicidal he asked asked if I could drive a truck......

[Paula Sue Haswell Beatty]

10:36 AM on 10/05/2011

It's good to laugh onece in a while isn't it.

[we-r-stardust]

04:25 PM on 10/05/2011

Hope you took the job

[FreeHat]

05:46 PM on 10/04/2011

The investment should be at the R&D level. This story reminds me of all failing businesses during the dot com boom.

[carleronn]

04:25 PM on 10/05/2011

Except that was private risk capital not the public's tax dollars

[cristoballs]

05:34 PM on 10/04/2011

"President Barack Obama said Monday he has no regrets about granting a $528 million federal loan to Solyndra Inc..."

big surprise!!! maybe if it was his own money he was gambling with, instead of the u.s. tax-payers' money, he might feel a little different.

[qqqh]

08:20 PM on 10/04/2011

Obama might proudly add to his no regret about Solyndra loan-I lost none of my own money
and you 47% of taxpayers who pay zero -- vote for me again--you lost nothing either
in 20-20 hindsight: you all deserve a bigger piece of the pie--and I have plans who will pay for the whole pie in the next four years--again you have nothing to lose--isn't America great?
I can buy the majority vote and put my finger on my nose and point it at the rest : "there's
your no taxation without representation-what are you going to do? Revolt again? Have a tea
party? See I promised to change America and I did!

[Billybladerunner]

08:38 PM on 10/04/2011

You hit the nail on the head .....He's down wit OPP

Fanned

[ranhead]

08:05 AM on 10/05/2011

Great comment,how true

[JoanMeijer]

04:30 PM on 10/04/2011

Nor should he have regrets. This was a company trying a new technology in a time when we need all the new technology we can get. He should have much greater regrets for all the drilling in the fragile oceans around Alaska that are costing us much more than this little project with much greater consequences if there is an accident or a failure.

[ranhead]

08:07 AM on 10/05/2011

New technology. Its been around since the 70s. TO EXPENSIVE

[Paula Sue Haswell Beatty]

10:45 AM on 10/05/2011

Oh Joan you poor thing again you miss the point, but you do rattle on so we are talking about Obama not doing his dudeligence, that's when you look before you leap with especially some one else's money, now do you get it, he was told by othere's that this company was not a good bet because they were in trouble with their finance's, sort of like the USA and he went ahead and did it any way, eather he's not very bright or there was some money that was waved at him we are not sure.

[riley85]

02:56 PM on 10/04/2011

I would like to have heard Obama explain why he had the loan restructured to protect the rich investors over the taxpayers. I know why--but want to hear his lame excuse.

[Billybladerunner]

08:38 PM on 10/04/2011

Fantastic question .....Fanned

[Paula Sue Haswell Beatty]

10:52 AM on 10/05/2011

Are you serious, we are still waiting to see if he really was a citizen, and what his supposed grade's were in all those fancy college's he attended, probably on some else's dime, and you really expect to get into the restruturing of the loan that put his invester's in line to get their investment's back ahead of the American tax payer, sorry buddy but you, will never hear that part of the story unless it's at his impeachment trial, which is where it should come out.

[amwa]

02:39 PM on 10/04/2011

I agree with the President. When did 100% of all companies ever make it. Never. The negativity of the Republican party is all a game play. To them the glass is always half empty never half full. They would rather we sit back and let all these other countries cash in on green jobs. They are killing as a leader to justify their agenda which is for not only our President to fail but for our country to fail.

[richdove]

03:08 PM on 10/04/2011

Can you cite a country that we want to copy with green jobs that has 350,000,000 people to accommodate? I doubt you can, because there are none except in the fantasy of Utopian socialists. I'm appalled you think it is okay for the President of the US to so casually dismiss misappropriation of tax payer funds to a failing business that he was warned about and that he allowed to visit the White House, pretty regularlly. I wonder how much money his campaign secured for that legal bribe?

[cristoballs]

05:39 PM on 10/04/2011

well, in defense of obama, they did contribute heavily to his campaign:-P

[cristoballs]

05:38 PM on 10/04/2011

yeah, like denmark where their people pay the highest energy costs in the world. yeah, they're really cashing in on that green energy. of course you agree with obama. you worship him to the point that you can't see anything wrong him. you see nothing wrong with the government taking your money by force, and gambling it away on business ventures don't make financial sense.

[Craig Bovia]

02:39 PM on 10/04/2011

The GOP-Baggers and their job-creators want "made in U.S.A." They will only pay the lowest price, though. Byby Small Business-Hello Walmart. Solyndra cost, at least, $2.50 per KLW hour. China's solar panels cost $1.25 per KLW hour. They Buy China and say Byby U.S.A. and Solyndra's jobs. And they have the nerve to criticize President Obama and His Administration for supporting American Manufacturing. They want to cut the budget after Bush spent like a hooker with Buffett's American Express. What a loverly bunch of Cocomutts

[richdove]

03:12 PM on 10/04/2011

I'm glad you are so smart that you can defend incompetency with twisted facts and unreadable hyperbole. If you keep calling people names maybe they'll forget that Obama has outspent both Bush presidencies. Facts shouldn't be hard to deny or are they?

[Craig Bovia]

02:49 PM on 10/05/2011

What planet did you find your facts on? If you are going to be critical, at least, you should try using the Truth. Do you actually believe that President Obama has outspent both Bush's? And someone was dumber than you and gave you a badge for insight. The two of you represent the level of American Ignorance at it's best, and how bad our education system really is. Congratulations! Few people achieve actual nadir.

[qqqh]

08:28 PM on 10/04/2011

Oh yeah-yeah-blah-blah-blah.....with such wonderful results and inspired, working, marvelous
change......how could anyone blame our beloved leader?

[Craig Bovia]

02:56 PM on 10/05/2011

Your sweethearts, Bush/cheney put US here. Doncha KNow? I guess not. That would be too much to ask from

[Sfumato2]

02:22 PM on 10/04/2011

Conservative politicians, blogger, pundits have been slamming the President on this story, the moment it broke. You would think It's as big as his number of states faux pas. I just wonder if they would be so on the attack, if this was a grant going to "Clean Coal" development? Maybe they would. But this does give a peak into GOP/Tea Party long term energy plan, if there's such a thing..? It's still 'Drill Baby, Drill" in their eyes, even though that will not move us to energy independents.. Fossil fuel price will always be determined by the world market, they real have trouble with this concept. So, the GOP plan is to ignore the inevitable demise if oil and gas, cut environmental protection and cut funding for alternative energy R & D. If you like this plan vote Mitt, 2012.

[richdove]

03:17 PM on 10/04/2011

Americans who are paying attention to where our tax dollars are being spent in an inappropriate way are correct to question the philosophy of this President and his followers and supporters. So far we've seen nothing to show any less dependence on foreign oil and so far Green jobs are a liberal fantasy that you seem to espouse. This article is about Obama being warned and still going ahead with a proven bad investment. Not my idea of a smart man!

[Sfumato2]

04:28 PM on 10/04/2011

Tax dollars spent? Where was your kind of America at the start of our 2 wars?

[Paula Sue Haswell Beatty]

11:31 AM on 10/05/2011

It has nothing what so ever to do with your rant, this deal was no go from the start any one can see that, but instead of looking out for the country you live in you chose to continue to back this losser, maybe because your a losser, I don't know or maybe you just do not wish to to admitt you made a mistake and voted for this fool, I'm sure that there is some reason in your little mind, but that does not make your choise of leadership look any better, if what you are ranting about is the best you've got keep it to your self, we that care what direction our country is going in are trying to stop this kind of crap that your leader keep's throwing at us

[labrown]

01:57 PM on 10/04/2011

"WHAT? ME WORRY"?

[slinkybro]

01:56 PM on 10/04/2011

Is the guy in the Obama administration that said this a good deal the same one that doesn't know the difference between Colorado and Wyoming?

[Craig Bovia]

02:40 PM on 10/04/2011

No! Your talking about the base of the baggers

[Paula Sue Haswell Beatty]

11:48 AM on 10/05/2011

You talking about the one's that care what direction were going in or do you get confused when it come's to that and just go long with the one that sound's good. Are you really that strange?

[slinkybro]

09:36 PM on 10/11/2011

Are you saying that the Obama administration is made up of Tea Partiers? Or do you just blame the Tea Party for everything, whether they have anything to do with it or not?