We'll invest $15 billion a year over the next decade in renewable energy, creating 5 million new green jobs that pay well, can't be outsourced, and help end our dependence on foreign oil," candidate Barack Obama pledged on Nov. 1, 2008.
Three years and eight months later, as unemployment has exceeded 8 percent for 41 straight months, Obama seems incapable of keeping this promise.
Consider three key programs of the U.S. Department of Energy.
DOE's website boasts that its "clean energy" initiatives loaned $34.7 billion and launched "nearly 60,000" jobs. This totals a staggering $578,333 per position.
According to the Bureau of Economic Analysis, private employers pay average workers $62,757 in wages and benefits.
So, Obama is "creating jobs" at 922 percent of the private sector's cost.
Obama touts green-energy "investments," even though this is not Obama's money to invest.
Rather than choose winners and losers, which would be bad enough, Team Obama picks losers. It subsidized at least 10 "clean" companies that went kaput.
Abound Solar of Loveland, Colo., consumed $70 million of its $400 million Energy Department loan guarantee.
The company blamed Chinese subsidy payments and European subsidy cuts for falling prices in its thin-film-panel sector. On July 2, Abound Solar filed for Chapter 7 liquidation and prepared to lock shop and fire its 125 employees.
Solar Trust envisioned the earth's largest solar-power plant. DOE enthusiastically offered it a $2.1 billion loan guarantee in April 2011, provided that it raised private capital.
Solar Trust missed DOE's benchmarks, however, and announced Chapter 11 bankruptcy last April 2.
Source:http://www.newschief.com/article/20120723/NEWS/207235015
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