Who's The Bigger Crook? Morgan or Government?

When news of J.P. Morgan Chase's $2 billion trading loss reached Washington, federal regulators and Congress were apoplectic.  The banking giant was called on the carpet by the Securities and Exchange Commission.  Congress launched a series of hearings.  The White House harrumphed.

Too bad the same kind of righteous outrage has not accompanied the billions in losses suffered by green energy firms siphoning taxpayer dollars.  Unlike clients of J.P., taxpayers cannot withdraw their money when glaring investment decisions are exposed.   

Although the demise of solar panel manufacturer Solyndra was trumpeted nationally, dozens of other government-backed companies have quietly gone belly up without so much as a peep in the mainstream media.  The mounting taxpayer losses are a national disgrace that deserves public airing.

Solyndra went bankrupt last year, taking with it a $535 million government loan that was part of President Obama's phony stimulus package designed to "put Americans back to work."  Scores of jobs were lost when the solar firm shuttered its doors.

Unfortunately, Solyndra is only the tip of a hidden iceberg of deception about President Obama's use of taxpayer funds to prop-up the so-called green energy industry in the name of economic stimulus.

Many cash-flush green energy companies used taxpayer money to fatten the wallets of executives.  Several firms took the funds and opened facilities overseas, costing Americans jobs. Criminal investigations have followed in a handful of cases.  Yet the media has remained silent.

Here are some of the most egregious examples of the toxic mix of failed government oversight, corporate debauchery and executive malfeasance:

ECOtality: The Obama Administration doled out $141 million in stimulus money to this manufacturer of electric vehicle charging stations.  During 2011, the firm hiked executive and director compensation by 150 percent.  The company has racked up more than $45 million in losses and its executives are under investigation for insider trading.

First Solar:  The solar power operator received nearly $1.5 billion in stimulus-backed loans from the Department of Energy.  The company recently fired 30 percent of its workforce in the face of a deepening financial crisis.  Yet the company paid its chief executive officer a whopping $32 million in salary and bonuses over three years.   He was fired this year after First Solar's stock plummeted 30 percent.  In November of last year, the firm spent $223 million to expand its factory in Germany.

A123:  The electric battery manufacturer scooped up nearly $250 million in stimulus funds.  Despite the company's warning of an impending financial disaster, the company's top three executives were gifted with a 20 percent increase in salaries last year and were handed generous stock awards.  In a recent SEC filing, the firm warned that without more taxpayer money its future would be "adversely" affected.

SpectraWatt: The solar cell company received a $500,000 grant from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory as part of the stimulus package.  The firm was an abject failure, filing for bankruptcy in August of last year after barely two years of operation


Evergreen Solar, Inc:  The solar panel installation company grabbed $5.3 million of funds in the stimulus gold rush. The firm collapsed into bankruptcy last year.  According to news reports, Evergreen plans to emerge from from bankruptcy and focus on building its manufacturing facility in China.

Beacon Technology:  This energy storage company went bankrupt in 2011, just one year after it was given a $43 million Department of Energy loan guarantee as part of the stimulus package.  At the time of its Chapter 11 filing, Beacon was saddled with $47 million in debt and declared its revenues were insufficient to support ongoing operations.  Its assets were acquired by a private investment firm this year.

These and scores of other failed stimulus-supported firms stand as testimony to the government's deplorable record of bungled investments. Unlike J.P. Morgan Chase, the Obama Administration has not been called to account for the billions of wasted taxpayer dollars.

There should be no double standard.  J.P. Morgan Chase's losses have been publicly scrutinized and investigated.  The company's CEO has assumed full responsibility for mishandling of funds.

Americans deserve a scrupulous accounting of stimulus spending on green energy.  However, in today's culture of media complicity and political corruption, government accountability is as allusive as honest answers from the Obama Administration.