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Solar panels are not the only method to generate power from solar energy.
OP mentioned the building of these things in the Southwest. They need staff. Very well-educated staff.
And besides, even with the normal solar panels, you still need to design and build them. Assuming this begins around the early days of the environmental movement and a president like Carter is able to start the ball rolling and avoid it stopping, eventually this federal funding is going to develop an entire industry based around renewables and high-technology. Silicon Valley starts sooner and becomes even bigger than it is now.