When news broke last week that liberal heiress and left wing funder of Colorado Democrats, Pat Stryker, may be implicated in the Abound Solar government boondoggle, a number of our readers sent along a juicy tidbit: this wouldn't be the first time that a corporation tied to Stryker has been accused of stealing from the public trough.  

In 2007, the Stryker Corporation, the company founded by Pat Stryker's grandfather and the source of much of her personal wealth, paid $16.6 million to settle Medicare fraud allegations.

Former Colorado GOP Chair Dick Wadhams referenced the fraud allegations in 2008, telling The Denver Post:  

"When Democrats talk about corporate greed, what could be more greedy than ripping off the federal program that takes care of the poor and the elderly? What could be a better example of corporate greed than the Stryker Corp. being convicted of Medicare fraud in South Dakota."

Making matters worse for Stryker in the Abound boondoggle are the pay-to-play allegations regarding $400 million government loan to Abound Solar which was approved by the Obama administration's Energy Department.

The Sunlight Foundation found that there is a "Pat Stryker" listed in the White House visitor logs in October 2009, though the White House refused to confirm details of the meeting or if it was the Pat Stryker in question.

Obama announced the $400 million loan to Abound Solar in July 2010.

Stryker denied any involvement in the alleged Medicare fraud through the Stryker Corporation, saying through a spokesman that she had no involvement in the daily management of the company.

But Stryker has yet to weigh in on her involvement with Abound Solar and the $400 million government loan it got from an administration she has donated heavily to.

As Peter Schweizer has reported, 16 of the 20 billion dollars loaned by the Energy Department has gone to companies owned or operated by Obama donors. 

Pat Stryker: Did you have a role in getting the Obama administration to approve the Abound Solar loan?