Erick EricksonOn June 20, 1979, then-President Jimmy Carter dedicated solar panels newly installed on the White House roof, saying, “In the year 2000 this solar water heater behind me, which is being dedicated today, will still be here supplying cheap, efficient energy.” Less than a decade later, President Ronald Reagan had the panels removed. The panels of the day were not very efficient and were doing little more than heating water.
Fast-forward to today and it is clear the Carter-era stunt did much to cement in the minds of conservatives that solar energy is a waste of resources and must be subsidized. Compounding conservative distrust, liberals from coast to coast insist that the government subsidize wind and solar power to more quickly replace carbon-based energy sources. Conservatives see the left pushing for a subsidy of Carter’s solar legacy and they naturally gravitate toward traditional power monopolies.
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