Rep. Jim Jordan (R., Ohio) broke down the saga of embattled electric car manufacturer Fisker Automotive Friday on FNC.
Taxpayers could be on the hook for $200 million if the company defaults on their $529 million DOE backed loan, according to Jordan:
GRETA VAN SUSTEREN: [...] What is the story?
JIM JORDAN: Just a pattern at the Department of Energy. It's not the first company as you mentioned. You had Solyndra, Beacon Power. Abound solar. A123 Battery and Fisker. You have several more companies on the verge. There is a great piece in today's Wall Street Journal Kim Strassel, they will tell you all the time they base these decisions on the merits of the so-called project and the company. But yet when you go through the facts, Fisker for example, CCC credit rating. Junk status.
GRETA VAN SUSTEREN: Which is why they had to go federal, because no private person would lend money.
JIM JORDAN: And I know what point you care about and we all care about is and what that does, too, is crowd out worthy companies from getting private investment. Because a lot of private investment will follow [and say] "well if the government is backing this" then maybe that is where we should private investment at the opportunity cost of helping some other worthy project out there. CCC credit rating. The loan value was twice that of the collateral. Now who does something like that? Only the government, only the government and Department of Energy with your tax dollars and we have an e-mail from the CEO of Fisker saying we need the loan approved now because I can't meet payroll. So they couldn't meet payroll and under collatoralized to half the value of the loan, had a junk credit rating and yet they get your money. It has to be either complete incompetence which they say "no that is not the case" or it is political connections and that is what we point out or both maybe frankly.