Future Retirement Success
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Investing
  • Stocks
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Investing
  • Stocks

Future Retirement Success

Investing

Corporate Welfare Breeds Corruption

by August 12, 2024
August 12, 2024
Corporate Welfare Breeds Corruption

Chris Edwards

President Joe Biden said big corporations should pay their fair share, yet he increased corporate tax loopholes 92 percent. Biden promised to end trickle-down economics, yet he showered big corporations with the largest gusher of corporate welfare ever.

Just because many of the president’s subsidies are supposedly green does not exempt them from the inefficiencies, unfairness, and corruption that invariably accompany corporate handouts. Corporate lobbyists prey on venal and naive politicians to pass subsidy programs and then line up to fill their pockets.

A recent Associated Press article describes some of the corruption in Biden’s corporate subsidy programs. It reminds me of Solyndra, the solar company in bed with the Obama White House that stiffed taxpayers half a billion dollars.

Here are highlights from the AP:

As he campaigned for the presidency, Joe Biden promised to spend billions of dollars to “save the world” from climate change. One of the largest players in the solar industry was ready. Officials, board members and major investors in First Solar, the largest domestic maker of solar panels, donated at least $1.5 million to Biden’s successful 2020 bid for the White House. After he won, the company spent $2.8 million more lobbying his administration and Congress, records show — an effort that included high-level meetings with top administration officials.

… First Solar became perhaps the biggest beneficiary from $1 trillion in environmental spending enacted under the Inflation Reduction Act, which Biden signed into law in 2022 after it cleared Congress solely with Democratic votes. Since then, First Solar’s stock price has doubled and its profits have soared thanks to new federal subsidies that could be worth up to $10 billion over a decade. The success has delivered a massive windfall to a small group of Democratic donors who invested heavily in the company.

… First Solar offers an example of how that legislation, shaped by lobbyists and potentially influenced by a flood of campaign cash, can yield mammoth returns to the well-connected.

… Company officials cultivated a constituency with Democrats during President Barack Obama’s administration, which in turn subsidized them through billions of dollars in government-backed loans. When the Biden administration started writing rules to implement the Democrats’ new law, First Solar executives and lobbyists met at least four times in late 2022 and 2023 with administration officials, including John Podesta, who oversaw the measure’s environmental provisions.

… The company will benefit from billions of dollars in lucrative tax credits for domestic clean energy manufacturers … Last December, First Solar agreed to sell roughly $650 million of these credits to a tech company — providing a massive influx of cash, courtesy of the US government.

… Farhad “Fred” Ebrahimi was added to Forbes billionaires list in 2023 thanks to the skyrocketing value of his roughly 5% stake in First Solar, financial disclosures show. Ebrahimi, along with his wife and family, contributed at least $1 million to Biden’s election effort, according to campaign finance disclosures.

Corporate welfare is a bipartisan curse. But I agree with this op-ed by Stephen Ford that the Republican Party—even though leaning populist these days—has an opportunity to come out swinging against corporate welfare. “The GOP should embrace the most populist philosophy ever devised: economic freedom,” he says, not “corporate handouts, bailouts and carve-outs.”

0
FacebookTwitterGoogle +Pinterest
previous post
Gaussion secures £9.5 million to revolutionise electric vehicle battery charging
next post
Financials Power Price Rally off Lows

You may also like

Argentina’s Javier Milei Is Slashing Big Government –...

January 12, 2024

The Government Uses “Standing” Doctrine to Evade Judicial...

April 22, 2025

Bipartisan Bill Seeks to Safeguard Americans from the...

December 12, 2024

Will the Precautionary FDA Slow‐​Walk Approval of a Promising...

May 31, 2023

10 Reasons to Cut Corporate Welfare

March 6, 2025

A New, Depressing Survey on Inflation

July 21, 2023

The CFPB’s Overdraft and NSF Mess

April 2, 2024

When “Fairness” Becomes Censorship: The Push to Regulate Social...

April 11, 2025

The State of Student Loan Forgiveness: September 2024

September 3, 2024

Islam and Human Rights: Remarks at the Princeton...

December 15, 2023

    Get free access to all of the retirement secrets and income strategies from our experts! or Join The Exclusive Subscription Today And Get the Premium Articles Acess for Free

    By opting in you agree to receive emails from us and our affiliates. Your information is secure and your privacy is protected.

    Recent Posts

    • Trump ally stands firm against ‘big, beautiful bill’ despite pressure: ‘It’ll completely backfire’

      June 8, 2025
    • Rubio condemns assassination attempt on Colombian presidential candidate Miguel Uribe

      June 8, 2025
    • Obama WH physician says Biden doc should have performed cognitive test

      June 8, 2025
    • Trump warns of ‘serious consequences’ if Elon Musk funds Democrats

      June 7, 2025
    • Musk jokes about reconsidering stance on Big Beautiful Bill after Schiff’s praise

      June 7, 2025
    • Musk deletes explosive posts about Trump and Epstein files

      June 7, 2025

    Categories

    • Business (8,152)
    • Investing (2,019)
    • Politics (15,571)
    • Stocks (3,136)
    • About us
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms & Conditions

    Disclaimer: futureretirementsuccess.com, its managers, its employees, and assigns (collectively “The Company”) do not make any guarantee or warranty about what is advertised above. Information provided by this website is for research purposes only and should not be considered as personalized financial advice. The Company is not affiliated with, nor does it receive compensation from, any specific security. The Company is not registered or licensed by any governing body in any jurisdiction to give investing advice or provide investment recommendation. Any investments recommended here should be taken into consideration only after consulting with your investment advisor and after reviewing the prospectus or financial statements of the company.

    Copyright © 2025 futureretirementsuccess.com | All Rights Reserved