White House to review Energy Department loans

[Roland99]

Source: AP

The White House on Friday ordered an independent review of clean-energy loans made by the Energy Department, its latest response to questions and criticism over a half-billion-dollar loan to a California solar company that eventually went bankrupt.

The announcement of an independent review came as House Republicans prepared to meet next week for a possible vote on a subpoena of White House documents related to Solyndra Inc.

...

Daley said the review would be conducted by former Treasury official Herb Allison, who oversaw the Troubled Asset Relief Program. The review would not look at the Solyndra case but would evaluate other loans worth tens of billions of dollars and recommend steps to stabilize them if they appear to have problems like the one to Solyndra did.

The White House has already refused a request by the Republican-controlled House Energy and Commerce Committee for all its internal communications about Solyndra.

Read more: http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_SOLAR_INVESTIGATION?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2011-10-28-15-04-23

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Transparency is un-American, apparently.

[backtomn]

1. Things haven't changed much.....

....it is still more about "Who" you know rather than "What" you know. I had hoped that things would change......wishful thinking.

[alp227]

2. NYT: Former Executive Chosen to Lead Solyndra Inquiry (Herbert Allison)

The White House directed a well-known businessman on Friday to conduct an independent review of government loans to energy companies, as House Republicans announced they would consider subpoenaing records related to a 2009 loan to a California manufacturer of solar-energy equipment that is now bankrupt.

In enlisting Herbert M. Allison Jr., a former executive who helped the Bush and Obama administrations rescue the financial system, the White House indicated some concern that it needed to get out ahead of the Congressional investigation into the loan portfolio of the Department of Energy and, in particular, the half-billion-dollar loan to the California manufacturer, Solyndra.

But officials also indicated that the White House would oppose any subpoena of additional internal records related to Solyndra. The administration has given more than 70,000 documents to Republicans investigating what they characterize as the first scandal related to the economic-stimulus package early in the Obama administration.

The White House contends that those documents show that the decisions related to Solyndra and other loan recipients were based on merit and made by nonpolitical career staff members following proper procedures.

full: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/29/us/solyndra-inquiry-to-be-led-by-herbert-m-allison-jr.html