SunPower: Twice As Bad As Solyndra, Twice As Bad For Obama

In this we see the total disregard for the American taxpayer and Chicago cronyism at it worst by the Obama administration. In the private sector, if these loans were given, the bankers would be fired and many brought up on charges. The only reason this is not happening is that, thanks to Obama and his cronies, the taxpayers are on the hook and not the banks.

Our countries only possible salvation is to remove these crooks from office as soon as possible.

Excerpt: How did a failing California solar company, buffeted by short sellers and shareholder lawsuits, receive a $1.2 billion federal loan guarantee for a photovoltaic electricity ranch project—three weeks after it announced it was building new manufacturing plant in Mexicali, Mexico, to build the panels for the project.

The company, SunPower (SPWR-NASDAQ), now carries $820 million in debt, an amount $20 million greater than its market capitalization. If SunPower was a bank, the feds would shut it down. Instead, it received a lifeline twice the size of the money sent down the Solyndra drain.

According to the statement, Dennis V. Arriola, the company's chief financial officer said the new credit line will improve the company's ability to operate.

“However, the challenging market conditions continue to impact our global residential and commercial business. As a result, we will revise our 2011 revenue and earnings outlook on our third-quarter earnings conference call to be held on Nov. 3,” he said.

As much as Arriola's negative guidance shook up the markets, it also reflects a lesson learned.

In addition to all its other challenges, the company and its officers are defendants in a federal shareholder lawsuit, whose plaintiffs include, the Austin (Texas) Police Retirement System, the Arkansas Teachers Retirement System and a number of institutional investors for an alleged scheme to deceive the investing public by making false statements contrary to nonpublic information known to the insiders.

The allegations cover the period between April 17, 2008, to Nov. 16, 2009, the day the company announced that it had discovered unsubstantiated accounting entries to its operations in the Philippines, which led to the significant restating of the company's financials.

There are a number of lawsuits filed in California courts relating to the same period alleging gross mismanagement, breach of fiduciary responsibility, unjust enrichment and abuse of control.

The first of the lawsuits was filed Nov. 18, 2009, and they have yet to be resolved.

It is a fair question to ask how a company with such serious charges lodged against its management team could receive a $1.2 billion loan guarantee from the taxpayers, so it could built a new manufacturing plant in Mexico to build the solar panels it will install at a photovoltaic ranch that will create a total of 15 permanent jobs.

Read full Human Events article here.