If you’re unfamiliar with the scandal, check here and here and here. If you’ve been following along, continue reading.

Officials from Barack Obama’s Department of Energy sat-in on board meetings for the now-bankrupt, politically-connected Solyndra “green” energy company.

The officials had a close-up view of the non-viable, failing company that mysteriously managed to get a half-billion dollars in federal loans at very low interest rates.

Officials from the Department of Energy have for months been sitting in on board meetings as “observers” at Solyndra, getting an up-close view as the solar energy company careened towards bankruptcy after spending more than $500 million in federal loan money.

Word of the Energy Department’s unusual arrangement came as federal agents on Thursday converged on the California headquarters of the failed solar company, focusing fresh attention on the first corporate beneficiary of President Obama’s stimulus program to create new clean energy jobs…

Questions about the loan have been simmering for months. In 2009, the Energy Department put Solyndra’s application on a fast-track for approval, and announced the award with great fanfare. The generous terms of the government loan included the lowest interest of all the green projects benefitting from Energy Department help, iWatch News and ABC News found.

And as part of the deal, the Energy Department agreed that if the company went bust, private investors could recoup their losses before the government.

Amongst those private investors? Billionaire and Obama donor George Kaiser, who will be recouping his personal money before taxpayers see even a dime. And the Obama Administration agreed to that.

All the while industry experts predicted Solyndra would fail. Why? Because it was costing the company upwards of $6 per unit. Chinese solar companies were doing the same for less than $2 per unit — and making a profit.

One former employee reveals:

“At least $100,000 a day was thrown away,” Walahi said. “If they are wasting $100,000 a day, how much is that a month or a year? Of course that’s going to lead to bankruptcy.”

And yet the Obama Administration fast-tracked and proudly unveiled more than $500 million in government, taxpayer-backed loans to the company. A company that just happens to have strong political ties to Barack Obama and his campaign. And loans that just happened to ensure Obama-supporting billionaires would recoup losses before American taxpayers.

What makes this worse is that the administration had to have known that the company was failing. Officials sat-in on board meetings for months. Employees knew the company was headed towards bankruptcy. Industry analysts knew it was destined to fail. How could federal officials with access to board meetings not know the same thing?

The details of this case have become significantly scandalous that now House Democrats are demanding answers, too.

“Less than two months ago, Mr. Harrison met with us and other Committee members to assure us that Solyndra was in a strong financial position and in no danger of failing,” Diana DeGette (D-Colo.) and Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) wrote to Republicans leading the investigation. “These assurances appear to contrast starkly with his company’s decision to file for bankruptcy last week.”

Those questions reveal a significant turn, as DeGette and Waxman were among members to vote against subpoenaing the White House budget office for records on the loan. Now, they are among those pressing questions – as the House has called Harrison to testify next week.

So let’s review.

The Obama Administration handed over more than $500 million in taxpayer-backed loans to a politically-connected company that officials and independent analysts knew couldn’t survive.

The terms of that loan included a provision that allowed Obama-supporting billionaires to recoup financial losses before taxpayers.

And the administration allowed the CEO of this company to go to Capitol Hill and lie to members of both parties about the company’s financial state.

And we’re supposed to believe all of this was on the up-and-up. Uh huh.