Rahm Defends Solyndra: 'It's Not About Warning Signs ... the United States Government Is Doing Venture Capitalism'

RAHM EMANUEL: Here’s how I look at it. One, we worked really hard on saving the auto industry, about 1.2 million jobs. That was an investment of about $50 billion and that has turned out against conventional wisdom to turn out to be the right thing to do to help the president make that decision. It’s not about warning signs etc. We don’t have a price on carbon; we don’t have a renewable portfolio, so the United States government is left as it started under George Bush doing venture capital. And like venture capital, sometimes you’re right and sometimes you’re wrong and that’s unfortunate. Nobody takes losing money easy, but if you look at it as an investment it was $50 billion invested in General Motors and Chrysler and that turned out to be a right investment. So take a wide-lens view of the policy. I did my job as chief of staff. My focus is as mayor of the city of Chicago.