Jon Stewart on Solyndra, the ‘Custom-Tailored Obama Scandal’
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Jon Stewart, host of Comedy Central's "The Daily Show", discussed the growing scandal around the solar power company Solyndra.
Comedian Jon Stewart has a message for any down-trodden Obama critics who watched the President survive several potential political scandals from his association with Rev. Jeremiah Wright to the birther controversy: “Merry Christmas.”
The host of Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show” was referring to the growing questions around a massive “suspect” loan guarantee the Energy Department made to a now-bankrupt solar company, Solyndra, under the Obama administration – a story ABC News’ Brian Ross Investigative Unit first reported in March.
Told in his signature sarcasm-laced commentary over a myriad of news reports, Stewart devoted an eight minute opening segment of Thursday night’s show to Solyndra, calling it the inaugural installment of a new series called “That Custom-Tailored Obama Scandal You Ordered Is Finally Here”.
WATCH: ‘The Daily Show’ on Solyndra
Solyndra, a California-based company that produces solar panels, was the poster-child for the Obama administration’s green energy program until it collapsed in bankruptcy in late August. Two years before, the Department of Energy appeared to rush to give the company a $535 million federal loan guarantee, without waiting for final copies of outside reviews of the deal meant to protect the taxpayers’ money.
“Maybe their hearts were in the right place and they bet on the wrong horse,” said Stewart. “It’s not like there’s any damning evidence they knew in advance this horse was, in fact, a donkey.”
“The Daily Show” then played news clips featuring emails, obtained by ABC News, which revealed the administration had directly monitored the loan process, even as analysts were voicing serious concerns about the risk involved.
“You know, stories about incompetence in government are only going to get you so far though. For this to truly become weapons-grade political fodder, you’re going to need incompetence with more than just a whiff of sinister cronyism,” Stewart said.
After the leading comment, Stewart played clips from “World News With Diane Sawyer” in which ABC News’ Chief Investigative Correspondent Brian Ross reported a major Obama donor, George Kaiser, was not only a primary investor in Solyndra, but had visited the White House no less than four times before the loan’s final approval.
Thursday, the White House Press Secretary Jay Carney addressed Kaiser’s visits, telling ABC News’ Senior White House Correspondent Jake Tapper the meetings were about “charitable efforts” and not about the loan. Kaiser has also said he did not seek any political influence in the loan process.
Stewart closed the segment with what he called “the most ironic word[s]” about the whole story, courtesy of Joe Biden during a video-chat on the same day as a new Solyndra plant opened.
“Once your facility opens, there will be about 1,000 permanent new jobs here at Solyndra and in the surrounding business community and hundreds more to install your growing output of solar panels throughout the country,” Biden said. “It’s important. It’s important because these jobs are permanent jobs.”
When Solyndra shuttered, 1,100 people lost their jobs.
The House Energy and Commerce Committee, the FBI and the Department of the Treasury have each opened investigations into the Solyndra deal.
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Yes, the Stewart bit was funny. Eleven hundred people lost their jobs. That’s not funny………………….
Posted by: Searambler | September 16, 2011, 12:53 pm 12:53 pm
I thought Fast and Furious was a tailor made Obama scandal
Posted by: bondservant1958 | September 16, 2011, 1:42 pm 1:42 pm
… and this is Obama’s scandal, why??? LOL… trying to find something on Obama is a 24/7 job for his haters! Boehner’s Bunch is gonna make it seem like Obama single handedly bankrupted this company or something else. LOL.. they are so transparent!
Posted by: Lorrie | September 16, 2011, 1:43 pm 1:43 pm
I don’t think I would call this a scandal, especially considering the true scandals that took place in prior administrations.
Posted by: mijoje1 | September 16, 2011, 1:58 pm 1:58 pm
HAHAHAHAHAHA You people are unbelievable!!! I think they pretty much summed up why it is Obama’s scandal in THIS ARTICLE!!! If ABC can’t even spin it, then it can’t be spun!
Posted by: HERR1280 | September 16, 2011, 2:12 pm 2:12 pm
No wonder the Daily Show has racked up emmy after emmy….why? because they do RESEARCH!!! The tie the easist of stories that the rest of the world leaders, gov’t, try and either blind you with or hide behind. Kudo’s Jon….Kudos. Your staff of writes and researchers are unparallelled. I know his show is supposed to be funny, but how many comedy shows—rate as the number one show to get ACTUAL gov’t findings and goings on? Is it because the news slants it? (talking to you Fox news)….if people actually watched TDS, then people would get a better understanding of what is going on. It’s really sad what the leaders of this world are doing behind our backs–yet in front of our face.
Posted by: Chris | September 16, 2011, 2:50 pm 2:50 pm
535 Million!!! I’m SURE the Republicans will dive head first into this one and spend millions – BILLIONS if need be to find something wrong with this President. But, but – but where were THEY when 9 BILLION DOLLARS IN CASH was lost somewhere in Iraq during the bush years and it was NEVER looked into or INVESTIGATED. WHY???? Because it was the RIGHT that lost that money and THIS time it comes from the left. Very easy to see the slime that envelops the Party of NO and from their days of hiring that creep Ken Starr to investigate Bill Clinton for 8 years to find ANYTHING to bring him down. Maybe we should go back and try to find that 8 BILLION $$$ in Dick Chenny’s house or with gw himself – whatdyathink??? JERKS
Posted by: demnme | September 16, 2011, 3:04 pm 3:04 pm
I thought a worse scandal was Al Gore picking up campaign donations from Bhuddist monks that originated from the Red Chinese govt. That was baaad. Wonder what Jon had to say about that one. But, to those shouting out other mistakes and scurrilous deals and suspicious doings; the culprit’s party really doesn’t change the final outcome…selling favors is a low down thing to do…by either party. Your guy is dirty on this one. Prepare yourselves. The media is finally looking into your hero as they should have before he was elected.
Posted by: pam | September 16, 2011, 4:06 pm 4:06 pm
Don’t expect the US government to invest in winners. The US government should not be trying to choose winners. Nothing wrong with a little support for green energy, but $500 million is a lot of money sunk into this operation. I do not believe government should be “investing” in tindividual companies — it warps and skews the economy rather than putting tax dollars to efficient use. It would have had just as much economic benefit in this case to drop half a billion dollars out of a helicopter.
Posted by: ratkellar | September 16, 2011, 4:56 pm 4:56 pm
The $38.6 billion loan guarantee program Obama said would create 65,000 jobs only created 3,545, according to Energy Department records reviewed by the Washington Post.
Since 2009, approximately $9.6 billion has been awarded in loan guarantees to companies in the green energy sector, and an additional $9.2 billion has been set aside as conditional commitments, according to Bloomberg.
Despite the current job numbers, DOE officials claim that the loan program is still “on pace” to create or save about 60,000 positions.
Even if all of the 20 companies that have won loan guarantees meet their projections, which given recent bankruptcies in the “green” industry appears highly unlikely, that would still only “create or save ” a total of 8,050 workers.
So stewart was wrong even trying to defend THE OTHER companies that have failed.
Posted by: jabberwolf | September 16, 2011, 4:56 pm 4:56 pm
535,000,000 divided by 1,100 equals 486,363 per job. Almost half a million dollars per job lost by Obama and his merry little band of keystone cops.
Posted by: William | September 16, 2011, 5:55 pm 5:55 pm
Shame on ya Jon: While Solydra might be a black eye for the Obama administration, which at this time still remains to be seen. You failed to mention that while the US Green industry has been working on innovative more efficient and cost effective green technologies and manufacturing processes… the Chinese government has infused 30 Billion dollars into the manufacturing of first generation standard green products in order to under cut our market and put our own manufacturers out of business. Tell it like it really is!!!!
Posted by: Lily G | September 16, 2011, 7:38 pm 7:38 pm
Almost as amusing as the way Jon Stewart presented the story of another incredible waste and mismanagement of our tax dollars and the spin the administration put on this shady deal, are the complaints from the brain dead who would rather attack the host rather then acknowledge or even consider that this White House may be as inept or possibly corrupt as the former ones they are so quick to condemn. Go ahead, drink your Obama kool aid and put your blinders back on as this White House leads us further into an abyss.
Posted by: Mike | September 16, 2011, 7:53 pm 7:53 pm
i have to say this has signs of Obama’s personal fingerprints. Its the same thing as the bank bailout. Everyone including the Republicans in Congress was saying “hey this needs some rules to prevent abuse”. And the Democratic loyalists eventually follow Obama’s message “its too urgent to detail or debate, we just need to trust people will do the right thing as intended”.
And if you ask some bankers why they “stole” bail out funds for CEO and executive parachutes? If honest many would say “the leadership and situation was much worse than previously thought and in our reassessment we felt only personal hoarding would ensure wise management of these resources for the financial post-apocalyptic USA…then maybe as the new Kings of Former USA we can save tiny bit of US heritage with these misspent funds.”
So the energy deal same thing — including loyal followers of Obama basically not seeing any problem with administration of government funds. Money is infinite as long as thrown at worthy causes and green is infinitely worthy.
Posted by: well-duh | September 16, 2011, 10:04 pm 10:04 pm
Don’t get me wrong. President Obama seems like a truly nice guy. I thin he makes a great leaders as long as he has no connection to finances and regulation. That is he makes a great face to face leader to rally the people or negotiate deals where finances are predetermined. Good front labor or combat leader potential…not so good in logistic support roles.
Posted by: well-duh | September 16, 2011, 10:08 pm 10:08 pm
“Go ahead, drink your Obama kool aid and put your blinders back on as this White House leads us further into an abyss.” Drink it? I think they must be mainlining or snorting it at this point.
Posted by: Publius | September 17, 2011, 12:42 am 12:42 am
stewart’s righ on this. obama now has a full-blown scandal that’s all his own. does anyone believe that mr. kaiser was meeting with obama about charity work? really? totally absurd. this was pay for play at its most basic. and the restructuring of the loan priorities is the icing on the cake. obama restructured GM’s debt so his cronies in the unions would take priority over vested stakeholders. in this instance, obama helps out his vested cronies at the expense of the taxpayer. hope and change = same old sleaze.
Posted by: grumpopolis | September 19, 2011, 1:40 pm 1:40 pm
Why do I have to watch the DAILY SHOW to get real investigative journalism?
Posted by: rick | September 19, 2011, 2:01 pm 2:01 pm
The vast majority of DOE loans go to the nuclear industry, which doesn’t make us money either, and we have to deal with all the nuclear waste.
Posted by: rick | September 19, 2011, 2:03 pm 2:03 pm
The loan applications by Solyndra were applied for during the Bush administration and were processed and well on their way when the Obama admin came on the job. The fund raiser who is being labeled as dirty money thought he was in a winning corporation but no-one could compete with China’s government subsizing their products. And thin film solar is not, as Jon Stewart implied, a loser. It is a huge winner in many installations e.g. curved roofs, vertical installations. The factory went into bankruptcy. There were huge assets in the production facility. How much was paid on the dollar value of the loan? The right wingers aren’t saying, are they? I love Jon Stewart’s humor, but now will he also tackle the huge subsidies to the oil and gas industries, which occasionally cause huge losses. Have you forgotten Deep Horizon in 2010? General Electric nuclear power plants, including Fukushima this year? Billions of dollars missing in Afghanistan and Iraq? Farm subsidies, which prop up losses every year? The problem is the right is stuck in petroleum goo and will defend expenses whether in wars, environment, or health, and can’t stand to see solar coming on board to deplete their income.
Posted by: Kay in San Diego | September 20, 2011, 2:03 pm 2:03 pm
The now bankrupt Solyndra got more money from the stimulus than the states for their roads a bridges…something really stinks. We need an independent prosecutor to look into this, his trying to change a four star generals testimony for some bore buddies of his and the worst, Fast & Furious, selling guns to criminals and the Mexican cartel.
Posted by: Freedom | September 20, 2011, 4:15 pm 4:15 pm
Republicans… LOL. they’ll try their damndest to implicate Obama in this. LOL… shame on you! You Repubs still trying to stick something on him. GIVE UP ALREADY!!! YOU ARE STARTING TO LOOK FOOLISH!!!
Posted by: Lorrie | September 20, 2011, 4:24 pm 4:24 pm
@ KAY IN SAN DIEGO ===========The loan applications by Solyndra were applied for during the Bush administration and were processed and well on their way when the Obama admin came on the job. ======================
The Republicans will find a way to put this on Obama, just like they did with the economy! They couldn’t get Obama on the “birth certificate” so this is another shot for them. They truly show their ignorance the bigotry when it comes to the President. If it wasn’t so pathetic, it would be funny.
Posted by: Lorrie | September 20, 2011, 4:36 pm 4:36 pm
Kay, get your facts straight before you spout off, yes they applied during the Bush admin and was promtly put on hold but as soon as the current admin. got into office it was put on the fast trakt. This had nothing to do with solar energy but everthing to do with paying back Kaiser which is a big donator to Pres.Obamas campaign just like the first stimulus was a payback to unions.
Posted by: Lizzie | September 20, 2011, 4:52 pm 4:52 pm
John, They knew. The White House was told. Obama’s advisers knew that it was a bad idea. Hell, Bush figured that out!
Posted by: TexBork | September 20, 2011, 5:33 pm 5:33 pm
If you build a poor roof, it will eventually leak. So goes the Obama Administration’s stewardship of the White House. I believe there is more to come….much more.
Posted by: newcountryman | September 20, 2011, 6:08 pm 6:08 pm
Impeachment!!!
Posted by: billy bob | September 20, 2011, 6:17 pm 6:17 pm
Let me see if I have this figured out. A really rich guy trots back and forth to the White House several times to discuss charitable giving from, I assume, his or his families foundation , but all the while a company that he has heavily invested in is asking for tax payer money.
That doesn’t seem to go together.
If you have money to give away and to sponsor all those “great” NPR and PBS programs why would you need a loan for a venture such as solar panel construction?
Posted by: david | September 20, 2011, 6:41 pm 6:41 pm
Nice proofreading in the headline, ABC.
Posted by: Melba N. | September 21, 2011, 5:52 am 5:52 am