Obama administration considered bailout for Solyndra

In the days leading up to Solyndra seeking bankruptcy protection, President Barack Obama’s administration was mulling over a possible plan to save the company by buying it out, according to emails released by the government on Wednesday.

Had the plan been carried out, the buyout would have given the government between a 35 and 40 percent stake in the company. Additionally, the plan would have brought about a new board of directors, two of which would be selected by the Energy Department.

The plan came about from investment banking firm Lazard, who was paid $1 million to determine what options were available for Solyndra to avoid bankruptcy and bring the company back up to profitability within a reasonable time frame.

The documents, which details the government’s involvement in Solyndra, were released ahead of a Republican-led House subcommittee vote on Wednesday to subpoena the White House for documents related to Solyndra.

The Energy Department handed over 80,000 documents to the subcommittee, and says that the administration is committed to cooperating with the House subcommittee investigators.

However, Representative Cliff Stearns (R-FL) says that the White House has been “stonewalling” on releasing the documents (via Fox News).

“They feel that the inner circle of the West Wing is off bounds and we have no right to ask this information,” Stearns told Fox Business News this week. “I think the American taxpayers deserve an answer.”

via Associated Press, Fox Business

[Image credit: Solyndra]