During a four state public relations blitz this week, President Obama sat down for an interview with American Public Media’s Marketplace and gave a stunning response when asked about Solyndra, stating, “Obviously, we wish Solyndra hadn’t gone bankrupt. Part of the reason they did was because the Chinese were subsidizing their solar industry and flooding the market in ways that Solyndra couldn’t compete. But understand: This was not our program, per se."
While the president claims he’s not responsible for Solyndra, the facts say otherwise. After the Solyndra loan guarantee was rejected in the waning days of the Bush administration, it was quickly placed back on the fast track shortly after President Obama’s inauguration. Despite repeated warnings from OMB and DOE experts, Solyndra’s loan guarantee approval was rushed through. When the warnings of failure by the DOE and OMB experts came true and Solyndra was out of cash in the autumn of 2010, the Obama administration doubled down on their bad bet, restructuring Solyndra’s loan in early 2011 and putting wealthy investors at the front of the line ahead of taxpayers. As they say, the rest is history, and taxpayers are now on the hook for half a billion dollars.
Obama could not fool ABC News, which reported Thursday, “Obama mischaracterizes congressional support for the program, however. The loan to Solyndra was not part of a program developed by both Republicans and Democrats. Rather, it was entirely funded through the 2009 Recovery and Reinvestment Act, which did not receive any GOP votes."
ABC News also reminded the public that the president took credit for Solyndra’s success when visiting the plant, reporting, “During a May 2010 visit to Solyndra, Obama explicitly credited the Recovery Act with supporting the company’s early success. “˜Less than a year ago, we were standing on what was an empty lot,’ Obama said at the time. “˜But through the Recovery Act, this company received a loan to expand its operations. This new factory is the result of those loans.'"
The Washington Post Fact Checker weighed in on Friday, writing, “We find it hard to believe that any reasonable person could interpret Obama’s remarks this week as anything but a distinct effort to put the blame for Solyndra in some one else’s pocket. The president should accept responsibility, not shirk it."
President Obama’s revisionist history did not stop with Solyndra. While trying to shift blame away from himself on Solyndra, he was simultaneously attempting to secure undue credit for the popular Keystone XL pipeline. Just hours after making the comments to American Public Media, President Obama made public remarks that sought credit for approving and expediting the southern leg of the Keystone Pipeline during a visit to Cushing, Oklahoma. Conveniently, the president did not emphasize to the crowd that he delayed and eventually rejected the necessary permit for the entire Keystone XL pipeline to be constructed. The truth is, the southern leg of the Keystone XL pipeline is being constructed in spite of President Obama - not because of him.
Republican Solutions: The American Energy Initiative
In contrast to the president’s efforts to divert blame and claim credit, House Republicans have put forward real solutions - pursuing a comprehensive all-of-the-above energy plan that includes increased production here at home balanced with imports from our northern friends in Canada. Under the American Energy Initiative, the House has passed a number of legislative solutions to strengthen America’s energy security; to date, Senate Democrats have refused to approve any of these bills.
This ongoing effort embraces a true all-of-the-above approach and is focused on solutions to increase all forms of American energy and stop harmful government policies that are driving up prices.
