My reflection of both the Republican and Democratic National Conventions, from Tampa to Charlotte, with even the fact-checkers having to be fact checked, has been focused on green: renewable energy and taxpayer money.
Republican vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan "slammed President Barack Obama over Solyndra during his acceptance speech." Not surprising considering the ads coming from the Romney camp, hammering away at the Obama administration's failed energy policies along with the crony capitalism charges leveled, a compelling case which the mainstream media is hell bent on either ignoring or shielding the president from.
Ryan declared, “It cost $831 billion –– the largest one-time expenditure ever by our federal government,” referring to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, which was sold to the American people, guaranteed by the Obama administration; as a means to stimulate a dying economy and create jobs. “It went to companies like Solyndra, with their gold-plated connections, subsidized jobs and make-believe markets. The stimulus was a case of political patronage, corporate welfare and cronyism at their worst,” Ryan reinforced.
Conversely, President Obama made a series of energy claims, including renewable, during his acceptance speech, framing his energy policies as a success, and doubling down on his commitment to invest in clean energy.
Additionally, Obama denounced corporate welfare for oil companies at a convention that according to The Center for Public Integrity, was funded by “deep-pocketed corporate donors,” and one year to the day after Solyndra declared bankruptcy.
Steve Spinner: Obama Bundler and Former DOE Loan Programs Advisor
More amusing perhaps is the fact that the DNC rolled out the red carpet for the president's buddy, Steve Spinner, Obama bundler and former top advisor at the Department of Energy (DOE). Spinner, well known for his involvement and influence (ongoing investigation and internal emails prove) to the ill-fated, politically connected Solyndra, was spotted on the DNC stage, yet bolted for the exit as ABC news made several attempts to interview him.
Over the past two years, it has become perfectly clear that the Solyndra saga, once the poster child for the president's clean energy initiative, has morphed into the template for Obama's green corruption scandal: political payback. Yet, as most concluded a while ago, Solyndra is only the tip of the iceberg.
While this saga warrants an entire chapter, Spinner's part has been widely reported, including the fact that his wife's law firm was representing the California solar company, In October 2011, ABC News reported, "Allison Spinner's law firm, Wilson Sonsini, received $2.4 million in federal funds for legal fees related to the $535 million Energy Department loan guarantee to Solyndra,"
Article comments
1 - Dr. Joseph S. Maresca
I'm sure that voters will hear a debate on Green Energy. More importantly, how does all of the above contrast with Mitt Romney's ideas on Green Energy. The Green Party itself will be in the mix on the November Ballot. Also, The voters will have to weigh whatever negations there are in the current Green Energy policies as against spending more money on national defense under a Romney Administration.
For sure, huge amounts of money will be spent and perhaps even wasted. The question is this. Which candidate will provide the voters with a better outcome. Ultimately, the goal is to stimulate demand so that more consumers make purchases, industry rebuilds, people are hired in greater numbers and unemployment subsides. Which candidate will accomplish this better?
2 - Igor
Green energy is inevitable. We can either plan for it now and start building systems, or we can wait for more crises to develop. Either way will result in some waste and fraud, it's just a matter of how huge and when. We're probably better off planning early and as well as we can.