Democrats Aren’t Working: Crony Capitalists Get Red Carpet Treatment and Convention Speaking Roles

September 5, 2012

Democrats Aren’t Working: Crony Capitalists Get Red Carpet Treatment and Convention Speaking Roles

Americans Are Worse Off After Four Years of Obama, But Obama Bundlers Like Steve Westly Are Much, Much Better Off Thanks to Payoffs From Dems’ Stimulus

Democrats are rolling out the red carpet this week for crony capitalists who benefited from the Democrats’ failed trillion dollar taxpayer-funded stimulus, including investor Steve Westly who will address the convention this evening.
Taxpayers, however, are unlikely to receive such special treatment as new documents filed by Solyndra’s lawyers show that taxpayers will once again foot the bill for the Democrats’ failed stimulus. Solyndra investors are set to cash out on $300 million in tax breaks, despite owing taxpayers more than $500 million.
Despite wasting billions on failed, high-risk loans, Democrats remain unapologetic by continuing to defend their reckless gambling with taxpayer dollars.

Democrats are rolling out the red carpet this week for crony capitalists who benefited from the Democrats’ failed trillion dollar taxpayer-funded stimulus, including investor Steve Westly who will address the convention this evening.

OBAMA BUNDLER STEVE WESTLY TO SPEAK AT 5 PM: “Westly will be speaking in the 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. hour, according to the lineup.” (Maggie Haberman, “Solyndra Player On Convention Speaking Lineup,” Politico, 9/5/2012)

WESTLY HAS STAKES IN AT LEAST FIVE COMPANIES THAT RECEIVED TAXPAYER FUNDED DOE LOANS: “Westly has held stakes in at least five companies that have won DOE support. Oklahoma billionaire George Kaiser, another Obama bundler, was the biggest private backer of Solyndra. Westly, Spinner and the CEO of Allison Spinner’s law firm, John V. Roos, (now Obama’s ambassador to Japan), each raised more than $500,000 for Obama’s 2008 campaign.” (Matthew Mosk, “Obama Fundraisers Tied To Green Firms That Got Federal Cash,” ABC News, 8/29/2011)

WESTLY RAISED MORE THAN $1 MILLION FOR OBAMA DURING 2008 AND 2012 ELECTION CYCLES: (Center For Responsive Politics, Accessed 9/5/2012)

THE BIG PAYOFF: WESTLY’S INVESTMENTS RECEIVED MORE THAN HALF A BILLION DOLLARS IN LOANS, GRANTS AND STIMULUS FUNDS FROM OBAMA’S DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY: “All the while, Westly’s four-year-old green business has boomed. Since June 2009, four companies in his venture firm’s portfolio have received more than half a billion dollars in loans, grants or stimulus money from the Obama Energy Department, a review by the Center for Public Integrity and ABC News has found.” (Ronnie Greene and Matthew Mosk, “Green Bundler With The Golden Touch,” Center For Public Integrity & ABC News, 3/30/11)

WESTLY NOT THE ONLY CRONY CAPITALIST DARLING RECIEVING SPECIAL TREATMENT AT THE CONVENTION:

STEVEN SPINNER, DOE OFFICIAL WHO FAST TRACKED SOLYNDRA’S LOAN RECEIVED VIP TOUR OF DNC CONVENTION FLOOR: “Steven J. Spinner joined other top fundraisers for a VIP tour of the Democratic National Convention floor in Charlotte Monday evening, posing and waving for a photographer while standing behind the podium. When he saw ABC News cameras, however, he ran for the exit.” (Brian Ross, “Red Carpet for Solyndra Figure At Democratic Convention,” ABC News, 9/4/2012)

SPINNER PUSHED TO FAST TRACK SOLYNDRA LOAN TO SCORE POLITICAL VICTORY FOR OBAMA, DESPITE RISKS: “Spinner was last in the headlines in October, when emails surfaced showing he had pushed for the Solyndra loan from his post in the Energy Department, apparently in an effort to score the loan as a political victory for President Obama. ‘How hard is this? What is he waiting for?’ Spinner wrote in one of them. ‘I have OVP [the Office of the Vice President] and WH [the White House] breathing down my neck on this.’” (Brian Ross, “Red Carpet for Solyndra Figure At Democratic Convention,” ABC News, 9/4/2012)

SCORED TOP DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY POSITION AFTER RAISING MORE THAN $500,000 FOR OBAMA: “This is not Spinner’s first foray into fundraising for Obama. Spinner was awarded his high-ranking post with the Energy Department after raising more than $500,000 for Obama’s 2008 campaign, according to data compiled by the Center for Responsive Politics.” (Brian Ross, “Red Carpet for Solyndra Figure At Democratic Convention,” ABC News, 9/4/2012)

Taxpayers, however, are unlikely to receive such special treatment as new documents filed by Solyndra’s lawyers show that taxpayers will once again foot the bill for the Democrats’ failed stimulus. Solyndra investors are set to cash out on $300 million in tax breaks, despite owing taxpayers more than $500 million.

NEW DOCUMENTS: TAX BREAKS FOR SOLYNDRA INVESTORS COULD BE BETWEEN $306 MILLION TO $341 MILLION: “Papers filed Tuesday by Solyndra’s lawyers say that, under a best-case scenario, the shell company that will be the sole corporate remnant of Solyndra may be able to reap tax breaks from $306 million to $341 million.” (Peg Brickely, “Solyndra Backers Could Reap More Than $300 Million In Tax Breaks,” Wall Street Journal, 9/4/2012)

SOLYNDRA INVESTORS WILL BE ABLE TO USE SOLYNDRA LOSSES TO AVOID TAXES ON FUTURE INCOME COMPLETELY UNRELATED TO THEIR FAILED SOLYNDRA INVESTMENTS: “It will, however, hold ‘tax attributes’ consisting of more than one-half billion dollars in net operating losses,” the government filing states. “The equity holders … may then, assuming they meet the other requirements of the Internal Revenue Code, use those net operating losses to reduce their income tax liabilities on income earned from other sources completely unrelated to Solyndra.” (Jim McElhatton, “Solyndra Investors Could Reap Tax Windfall,” The Washington Times, 8/29/2012)

QUESTIONABLE LOAN RESTRUCTURING ALLOWED INVESTORS TO BE PAID BACK BEFORE TAXPAYERS IN CASE OF DEFAULT: “In addition to earlier financing, both companies provided $75 million to Solyndra last year in a controversial restructuring deal approved by the Department of Energy (DOE) that allowed the financiers to be paid back before taxpayers in case of a default… Republicans said that the restructuring only caused taxpayers to lose more money and that the arrangement violated federal rules.” (Jim McElhatton, “Solyndra Investors Could Reap Tax Windfall,” The Washington Times, 8/29/2012)

UNDER BEST CASE SCENARIO, TAXPAYERS MAY RECEIVE ONLY A TINY FRACTION OF THE $528 MILLION LEANT TO SOLYNDRA: “The solar-panel maker filed a reorganization plan in July under which the U.S. might not receive anything for its $528 million claim from an Energy Department loan guarantee. The government was projected to recoup at most 17 percent on the $142.8 million portion of the loan and probably nothing on the $385 million portion.” (Michael Bathon, “Solyndra Seeks More Time To Negotiate Reorganization Plan,” Bloomberg, 8/31/2012)

FLASHBACK: SOLYNDRA INVESTOR: “WHILE THAT’S GOOD FOR US, I CAN’T IMAGINE IT’S A GOOD WAY FOR THE GOVERNMENT TO USE TAXPAYER MONEY”: “But privately, at least one investor was concerned, writing in an email that while Solyndra won a loan of more than $500 million, it had revenues of less than $100 million and wasn’t yet profitable: ‘… while that’s good for us, I can’t imagine it’s a good way for the government to use taxpayer money…’” (Jim McElhatton, “Emails: Solyndra Took Sales Pitch Directly to Obama,” The Washington Times, 8/2/2012)

Despite wasting billions on failed, high-risk loans, Democrats remain unapologetic by continuing to defend their reckless gambling with taxpayer dollars.

“REPORT: ENERGY LOANS COULD COST [TAXPAYERS] $3B” FROM “HIGH-RISK” GREEN PROGRAMS: (“Report: Energy Loans Could Cost $3B,” Associated Press, 2/10/2012)

ENERGY AND COMMERCE RANKING DEMOCRAT HENRY WAXMAN (D-CA): SORRY I’M NOT SORRY ABOUT FUNDING SOLYNDRA: “I’m sorry Solyndra happened. We lost $500 million dollars. That’s a shame, but that’s why loan guarantees are provided. Because these are risky enterprises, and not all of them are going to succeed.” (Remarks from Henry Waxman, Energy and Commerce Hearing, 7/12/2012)

STIMULUS LOAN CHIEF: PROGRAM THAT FUNDED SOLYNDRA IS “AN ENORMOUS SUCCESS”: “Loan Chief Frantz: ‘Quite to the contrary, sir, I think it’s been an enormous success.’” (House Energy and Commerce Hearing, 7/12/2012)

OBAMA SAID STIMULUS WAS INTENDED TO “TAKE BETS” ON NOW-BANKRUPT COMPANIES LIKE SOLYNDRA: “But that’s exactly what the loan guarantee program was designed by Congress to do, was to take bets on these areas where we need to make sure that we’re maintaining our lead.” (“News Conference by the President,” The White House, 10/6/2011)

DEMOCRATS MAKING NO APOLOGIES FOR SOLYNDRA LOAN THAT LOST $535 MILLION IN TAXPAYER FUNDS: “Energy Secretary Steven Chu on Thursday declined an opportunity to issue a direct apology for Solyndra.” (Darren Samuelsohn, “Steven Chu: No Apologies on Solyndra,” Politico, 11/17/2011)

STIMULUS WEBSITE STILL PORTRAYS SOLYNDRA AS A JOB CREATOR: (“Estimated Jobs by Quarter,” Recovery.gov, Accessed 9/5/2012)

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