source: Huffington Post
Jim Jordan Concedes Elections Drive Solyndra Investigation
WASHINGTON -- After months of investigations into Solyndra and other Department of Energy loans failed to produce a smoking gun, one Republican lawmaker let slip why House Republicans have kept up the charge.
In an interview following yet another hearing in which Energy Secretary Steven Chu testified about the Department's loan guarantee program, Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) conceded that Republicans' ongoing probes of the program -- from which the bankrupt California-based solar company Solyndra and others benefited -- are largely a play to win votes in November.
"Our staff will continue to dig into it and see," Jordan told Energy and Environment Daily. "But what I hope happens is we stop doing these kind of things ... this whole cronyism approach to the marketplace.
"Ultimately, we'll stop it on Election Day, hopefully. And bringing attention to these things helps the voters and citizens of the country make the kind of decision that I hope helps them as they evaluate who they are going to vote for in November."
A call to Rep. Jim Jordan's office seeking further comment was not immediately returned.
The statement comes after Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.), the ranking member on the House Oversight Committee, charged Monday that the Republican-led House of Representatives' chief investigator, committee Chairman Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), had repeatedly launched "unsubstantiated" investigations into the Department of Energy.
In a letter to the powerful chairman, Cummings noted Issa had launched no fewer than 11 investigations into the department and its employees, many of which were "based on unsubstantiated allegations that proved inaccurate after further investigation."
"Although I fully support aggressive oversight to ensure that government programs work effectively and efficiently," Cummings wrote, "I believe the Committee should refrain from making accusations without evidence to support them and should correct the record when claims turn out to be inaccurate."
Jim Jordan Concedes Elections Drive Solyndra Investigation
WASHINGTON -- After months of investigations into Solyndra and other Department of Energy loans failed to produce a smoking gun, one Republican lawmaker let slip why House Republicans have kept up the charge.
In an interview following yet another hearing in which Energy Secretary Steven Chu testified about the Department's loan guarantee program, Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) conceded that Republicans' ongoing probes of the program -- from which the bankrupt California-based solar company Solyndra and others benefited -- are largely a play to win votes in November.
"Our staff will continue to dig into it and see," Jordan told Energy and Environment Daily. "But what I hope happens is we stop doing these kind of things ... this whole cronyism approach to the marketplace.
"Ultimately, we'll stop it on Election Day, hopefully. And bringing attention to these things helps the voters and citizens of the country make the kind of decision that I hope helps them as they evaluate who they are going to vote for in November."
A call to Rep. Jim Jordan's office seeking further comment was not immediately returned.
The statement comes after Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.), the ranking member on the House Oversight Committee, charged Monday that the Republican-led House of Representatives' chief investigator, committee Chairman Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), had repeatedly launched "unsubstantiated" investigations into the Department of Energy.
In a letter to the powerful chairman, Cummings noted Issa had launched no fewer than 11 investigations into the department and its employees, many of which were "based on unsubstantiated allegations that proved inaccurate after further investigation."
"Although I fully support aggressive oversight to ensure that government programs work effectively and efficiently," Cummings wrote, "I believe the Committee should refrain from making accusations without evidence to support them and should correct the record when claims turn out to be inaccurate."
