Department of Energy loan guarantee for now bankrupt Solyndra under investigation.

Republicans in the House of Representatives accuse the White House of pushing through a loan to now bankrupt solar panel maker Solyndra for political reasons. Republicans revealed emails from the White House to the now bankrupt manufacturer that details the White House’s attempts to rush through the loan guarantee ahead of a visit to a new Solyndra factory by Vice President Joe Biden. White House Press Secretary Jay Carney claims the emails detail the White House’s involvement with the loan in seeking to confirm the Vice President’s schedule thus the urgency expressed in the released emails should be seen in that light rather than as part of a process to expedite the loan guarantee to the troubled company. Solyndra’s bankruptcy filing and subsequent laying off of 1,100 employees garnered Republican interest and support for an investigation to be launched into the loan guarantee. The US Department of Energy’s loan guarantee for a 535-million dollar loan to Solyndra is seen by many as part of the Obama administration’s plan to boost green energy use in the United States. Solyndra is the maker of of cylindrical photovoltaic panels. The announcement of the funding for the plant was made by then California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, US Vice President Joe Biden and Department of Energy Secretary Steven Chu. Promising to create 3000 new construction jobs and to eventually employ 1,000 or so workers at the factory. The loan guarantee was received under the auspices of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. According to XinHua, California has the largest green economy in America. Beginning in 2004, then Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger mandated utilities use 20 percent of their power from renewable sources by  2010. This goal was increased to 33 percent by 2020.