Obama Says He Is “Responsible For Folks Who Are Working In The Federal Government”

Obama: “As President Of The United States, It’s Pretty Clear To Me That I’m Responsible For Folks Who Are Working In The Federal Government And You Know, Harry Truman Said The Buck Stops With You.” OBAMA: “Well, here’s what I know, we were just talking about responsibility and as president of the United States, it’s pretty clear to me that I’m responsible for folks who are working in the federal government and you know, Harry Truman said the buck stops with you.” (“President Obama Says Romney Should Answer Bain Capital Questions,”WJLA, 7/13/12)

• Obama: “One Of The Things You Learn Is, You Are Ultimately Responsible For The Conduct Of Your Operations…” OBAMA: “Ultimately Mr. Romney, I think, is going to have to answer those questions, because if he aspires to being president one of the things you learn is, you are ultimately responsible for the conduct of your operations, but again that’s probably a question that he’s going to have to answer and I think that’s a legitimate part of the campaign.” (“President Obama Says Romney Should Answer Bain Capital Questions,” WJLA, 7/13/12)

If The Buck Stops With Obama, Will He Take Responsibility For The Most Recent Administration Scandal?

Last Year, The Veterans Affairs Department Held Two Employee Conferences Which Cost $9 Million. “The Veterans Affairs Department last year held two employee conferences at a combined cost of $9 million at which attendees received tens of thousands of dollars in promotional items. And employees who organized the conferences may have improperly accepted gifts, including alcohol, concert tickets and spa treatments, according to sources.” (Stephen Losey, “IG Investigating Two VA Conferences That Cost A Combined $5 Million,” Federal Times , 8/13/12)

• “The VA’s Inspector General Is Investigating Allegations Of Wasteful Spending And Improper Acceptance Of Gratuities.” “The VA’s inspector general is investigating allegations of wasteful spending and improper acceptance of gratuities in connection with two human resources training conferences, held in Orlando, Fla., in July and August 2011. The IG’s office told Federal Times Aug. 13 it has ‘uncovered questionable activities’ in its probe, which began in April after receiving a tip on its hotline.” (Stephen Losey, “IG Investigating Two VA Conferences That Cost A Combined $5 Million,” Federal Times , 8/13/12)

Obama Won’t Answer For The Scandals That Have Plagued His Administration

Scandals Are “Generating The Kinds Of Questions That No Administration Wants To Answer This Close To A Re-Election Bid.” “Neither Obama nor his top aides have been implicated, but both of those stories are generating the kinds of questions that no administration wants to answer this close to a re-election bid.”(David Jackson, “Obama Grapples With Secret Service, GSA Scandles,” USA Today , 4/18/12)

The General Services Administration’s 2010 Western Region Conference “Made Headlines When An Inspector General Report Found A Pattern Of Excessive Spending, Waste, And Possible Fraud On The Pricey, Taxpayer-Funded Las Vegas Conference.” “The conference made headlines this week when an Inspector General report found a pattern of excessive spending, waste and possible fraud on the pricey, taxpayer-funded Las Vegas conference, where organizers went out of their way to organize a lavish, over-the-top celebration that included a mindreader, a clown, fancy food, and several ‘trial runs’ by GSA employees.” (Byron Tau, “Videos Of $800K GSA Conference Surface,” Politico, 4/7/12)

• Three Days After The Conference, “The President’s Office Of Government Ethics Gave A Clean Bill Of Health To The GSA’s Ethics Program.” “Three days after a scandal-plagued 2010 Las Vegas conference for employees of the General Services Administration, the president’s Office of Government Ethics gave a clean bill of health to the GSA’s ethics program. The approval was based on an examination of the agency’s financial disclosure procedures, and ethics training and advising processes between 2008 and 2009. “GSA’s ethics program appears to be effectively administered and in compliance with applicable laws, regulations, and policies,” Patricia Zemple, OGE’s associate director for the program review division, wrote in a Nov. 2, 2010, letter to then GSA administrator Martha Johnson and Inspector General Brian Miller.” (Timothy R. Smith, “GSA’s Ethics Program Approved Just Days After Scandal-Plagued Conference,” The Washington Post , 8/5/12)

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta Cost The Pentagon As Much As $860,000, About $32,000 Every Trip, As He Commutes Home For The Weekend Using A Military Gulfstream Jet. “Before accepting the job as defense secretary, Mr. Panetta negotiated his right to commute home to California nearly every weekend using a military equivalent of a Gulfstream jet, as his job as Pentagon chief requires him to do. The trips cost the government as much as $860,000, and Mr. Panetta paid about $630 per trip for a roundtrip flight that costs the Pentagon about $32,000, defense officials told the Associated Press.” (Susan Crabtree, “Panetta Paid $17k For $860K Commute To California,” The Washington Times, 4/6/12)

“As If The General Services Administration Flap Wasn’t Bad Enough — An $820,000 Conference/Party In Las Vegas — Now The Secret Service Prostitution Scandal Is Giving Headaches To The Obama Administration.” (David Jackson, “Obama Grapples With Secret Service, GSA Scandals,” USA Today , 4/18/12)

No Government Officials Responsible For “Fast And Furious” Have Been Held Criminally Liable. “One year ago today, Border Patrol Agent Brian A. Terry was gunned down in Arizona near the Mexican border by illegal immigrants armed with weapons from the now-infamous ATF ‘Fast and Furious’ gunwalking operation. Terry’s killing has touched off a firestorm that crossed international borders and trigger investigations, Congressional hearings, denials and admissions to the upper levels of the Justice Department. A statement issued today by Terry’s family raises the notion that responsible government officials should be prosecuted. ‘We now believe that if it can be shown that laws were broken, then all those responsible for Fast and Furious should be held criminally liable,’ reads the statement.” (Sharyl Attkisson, “Terry Family Marks One Year Anniversary Of Death Of Their Son, Brian Terry, Murdered Border Patrol Agent,” CBS News , 12/14/11)

ABC News: “Obama Fundraises With Players in Solyndra Scandal” (Devin Dwyer, “Obama Fundraises With Players In Solyndra Scandal,” ABC News’ “Political Punch,”, 7/23/12)

Politico : “Solyndra Players At Obama Fundraiser” (Darren Samuelson and Reid J. Epstein, “Solyndra Players At Obama Fundraiser,” Politico’s ” 44,” 7/23/12)

Politico : “Solyndra Hovers At Obama Event” (Alexander Burns, “Solyndra Hovers At Obama Event,” Politico’s ” Burns & Haberman,” 7/23/12)

The Washington Times : “Solyndra Figures Attend Swank Obama Fundraiser” (Dave Boyer, “Solyndra Figures Attend Swank Obama Fundraiser,” The Washington Times, 7/24/12)

San Francisco Chronicle : “GOP Slams Steve Westly For Juggling Lemons At President Obama Piedmont Fundraiser” (Joe Garofoli, “GOP Slams Steve Westly For Juggling Lemons At President Obama Piedmont Fundraiser,” San Francisco Chronicle , 7/23/12)

At A Fundraiser Last Night, Obama “Hobnobbed” With “Two Figures At The Center Of The Solyndra Loan Controversy.” “At an exclusive re-election fundraiser tonight, President Obama hobnobbed with 60 of his wealthiest supporters, including two figures at the center of the Solyndra loan controversy.” (Devin Dwyer, “Obama Fundraises With Players In Solyndra Scandal,” ABC News’ “Political Punch,”, 7/23/12)

• Steve Westly And Matt Rogers Were Both In Attendance. “Steve Westly, a Silicon Valley venture capitalist, was one of the first to raise red flags about the administration’s support for a $500 million loan to Solyndra, the solar energy start-up that later went bankrupt. He wrote directly to senior Obama adviser Valerie Jarrett in 2010 to raise concerns about the company’s viability ahead of the president’s high-profile visit that year. Matt Rogers, a former senior adviser at the Department of Energy, played a key role in approving Solyndra’s loan as part of the stimulus plan.” (Devin Dwyer, “Obama Fundraises With Players In Solyndra Scandal,” ABC News’ “Political Punch,”, 7/23/12)

Westly And Rogers Were Involved In Solyndra’s Loan Program

Mega-Bundler Steve Westly E-mailed With Valerie Jarrett Warning Her Of Solyndra’s Potential Political Fallout. “Steve Westly, a California venture capitalist who raised more than $500,000 for Obama’s campaign, exchanged emails with Valerie Jarrett, one of Obama’s closest advisers, to warn her about political fallout that could ensue if the president visited the factory being built by Solyndra.” (Matthew Moska and Ronnie Greene, “Obama on Solyndra: ‘Hindsight Is Always 20/20,’” ABC News, 10/3/11)

• Westly E-Mail To Jarrett: “Could you perhaps check with [the Energy Department] to make sure they’re comfortable with the company? I just want to help protect the president from anything that could result in negative or unfair press.” (Matthew Mosk and Ronnie Greene, “Obama on Solyndra: ‘Hindsight Is Always 20/20,’” ABC News, 10/3/11)

• Westly E-mail To Jarrett: “If it’s too late to change/postpone the meeting, the president should be careful about unrealistic/optimistic forecasts that could haunt him in the next 18 months if Solyndra hits the wall, files for bankruptcy.” (Matthew Mosk and Ronnie Greene, “Obama on Solyndra: ‘Hindsight Is Always 20/20,’”ABC News, 10/3/11)

Foundation Capital’s Paul Holland Described Matt Rogers As “A Hooker Dropped Into A Prison Exercise Yard.” “Yeah, that’s big question. So I guess I would just peel it back to a couple of weeks before I was at the Wall Street Journal’s Economics Conference and Matt Rogers who probably a number of you know came in and was doing a talk and this is going to be a little off collar so I don’t want to get in trouble for this. He came in to do his talk and opened his talk with, ‘I’m Matt Rogers I am the Special Assistant to the Secretary of Energy and I have $134 billion that I have to disperse between now and the end of December.’ So upon hearing that I sent an email to my partners that said Matt Rogers is about to get treated like a hooker dropped into a prison exercise yard . And I had the lack of judgment to go up and share that with him and the other people who were all standing around him at the end of the talk and uh fortunately for me they all laughed and thought it was funny.” (Paul Holland, Remarks, Venture Capital Panel, Green:Net 09, 3/24/09)