Tipsheet

Surprise! Romney Visits Solyndra Plant

In a very savvy political move, Mitt Romney made a surprise campaign stop at the bankrupt ($500 million at taxpayers expense) Solyndra plant today. The stop was kept secret until Romney's arrival, but he gave reporters a hint about the Solyndra appearance last night at a fundraiser.

At a fund-raiser in the San Francisco area Wednesday night, Mr. Romney again talk about the solar panel company, portraying the president as a failed venture capitalist who unsuccessfully tried to have government pick winners and losers.

“Have you seen the Solyndra corporation headquarters? You probably have,” Mr. Romney asked the crowd. “That’s what happens when government puts in hundreds of millions of dollars into an enterprise. And by the way, the president doesn’t understand when you invest like that in one solar energy company, it makes it harder for solar technology generally because the scores of other entrepreneurs in the solar field suddenly lost their opportunity to get capital. Who wants to put money into a solar company when the government puts half a billion into one of its choice? So instead of encouraging solar energy, he discouraged it.”

And in case you need a reminder about what Solyndra is: