September 1, 2011

Solyndra's Lobbyists

The Washington Examiner
written by Timothy P. Carney, Senior Political Columnist
Thursday September 1, 2011

The Obama administration sure liked to tout Solyndra, the solar-power company that took in millions of federal subsidies before going bankrupt this week. Given that this company's short life was dependent on government connections, it's worth looking at Solyndra's lobbyists.

I've spent a good bit of time studying companies' lobbyists, and Solyndra has a pretty impressive lineup, on par with much bigger companies. Here are a few:

In July, Solyndra retained the powerful Glover Park Group, where the company's lobbyists include top Max Baucus aide and Environment & Public Works Committee staffer Catherine Ransom, longtime Republican aide Alex Mistri, and Energy and Commerce staffer (and former John Kerry Legislative Director) Gregg Rothschild.

The company's in-house lobbyists are former top Republican Hill aides Joe Pasetti and Victoria Sanville.

Solyndra's biggest lobbying contract is with McAllister & Quinn, co-founded by Steny Hoyer's chief of staff Andy Quinn. Steve Ham, another former Hoyer staffer at McA&Q, is on the Solyndra account, as is Al D'Amato aide Chris Fish, and former American writer Kyle Winslow. Gotta love it when young cub writer jump from liberal magazines to K Street.

As befits any company seeking green subsidies, Solyndra retained McBee Strategic Consulting. Steve McBee, a former Dem Approps aide, helped lower the standards for federal green energy financing before signing Solyndra as a client and getting Solyndra the financing under these lower standards. Former Democratic Energy & Natural Resources staffer Angela Becker-Dippmann was also on the Solyndra account.

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