It didn't happen, of course. The share of electricity produced by solar cell technology in the U.S. last year was a mere 0.07%. Carter's solar water-heating system was removed in 1986 so a leak in the roof could be fixed. The solar panels were supposed to be reinstalled but they never were.
-Businessweek, 2004
After being taught to hate Carter, a refrain the Right is happy to revive, he now looks prescient.
We traded a chance at energy-security for ... Reagan's must-have "star wars", unveiled in March, 1983, which cost how much?
Update: from 1977,
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Real Leadership: The Last Time Around
On a sunny june day in 1979, President Jimmy Carter held the first and only press conference on the White House roof. Atop the West Wing, he unveiled a $28,000 solar cell system that captured the sun's energy to provide hot water for the White House. He also launched a sweeping drive aimed at harnessing the sun, the wind, and other renewable resources to generate 20% of America's electricity by 2000.
