More solar companies led by Democratic donors received federal loan guarantees

Solar panels in Boulder City, Nevada (Courtesy of First Solar)

RICHMOND, CA - OCTOBER 14: U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar (C) toured Sunpower Corporation's research and development facility October 14, 2010 in Richmond, California. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

(Courtesy of Abengoa Solar)

This artist rendering released by SolarReserve LLC shows what will be the Crescent Dunes Solar Energy Project, a solar generating facility, that is being constructed northwest of Tonopah, Nev., in Nye County. Energy Secretary Steven Chu said Wednesday, Sept. 28, 2011, the department has completed a $737 million loan guarantee to Tonopah Solar Energy, for a 110 megawatt solar tower on federal land near Tonopah. SolarReserve LLC, of Santa Monica, Calif., is the parent company for Tonopah Solar Energy. (AP Photo/SolarReserve)

Kevin Smith, CEO of SolarReserve appears on Fox Business Network

Composite image of four solar energy companies that have received federal loan guarantees (Getty Images, Screenshot)

A Daily Caller investigation has found that in addition to the failed company Solyndra, at least four other solar panel manufacturing companies receiving in excess of $500 million in loan guarantees from the Obama administration employ executives or board members who have donated large sums of money to Democratic campaigns.

And as questions swirl around possible connections between political donations and these preferential financing arrangements, the Obama White House suddenly began deflecting The Daily Caller’s questions on Wednesday to the Democratic National Committee.

Asked Wednesday to comment on the connection between large Democratic donors and Obama administration loan guarantees to the companies they represent, the White House responded to TheDC with a single sentence: “We refer your question to the Democratic National Committee.”

Concerns about the long-term viability of Solyndra, first made public by The Daily Caller back in February, have now expanded to include the financial health of other loan-guarantee recipient firms as well.

These companies have suffered from declining stock prices despite their favored status in the White House. Yet as the end of the federal government’s fiscal year looms on Friday, a new series of loans could be finalized amounting to more than nine times what taxpayers have already lost on the failed company Solyndra.

“Who was visiting the White House during this period of time?” Texas GOP Rep. Joe Barton asked when contacted by TheDC. Barton is a former chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee. “Who were they talking to and what were they talking about? Are there more loans at risk of not being paid back? Are these good investments or political favors?”

“The American people just lost a half billion dollars and they deserve answers to these questions before more money is wasted. Until we know exactly what happened, I think we should slow down this loan program and take a closer look at each case.”

“It is becoming more clear with each revelation that warning signs were ignored in the Solyndra case,” Barton continued. “Yet in the next 48 hours — because of a deadline that can still be changed — the Department of Energy is going to hand out another $5 billion in loans.”

Companies like First Solar, SolarReserve, SunPower Corporation and Abengoa SA have already, collectively, received billions in loans through Obama administration stimulus programs to build solar power plants in the southwestern United States.

Yet each, with the exception of the privately held SolarReserve, has seen its stock price hammered at the same time it was lobbying the Obama administration and Congress for billions in loan guarantees