[Dixie Yooper]

A few things I disagree with here;
The Democrats were in control of the House and Senate before, during and after Nixon and Ford.
The was no "Booming" economy during the Johnson, Nixon, Ford or Carter years. Nixon imposed wage and price freezes to control inflation which was a band-aid remedy at best for inflation, and an anchor on the economy.

[Interesting Times]

I agree that Carter shouldn't get all the blame for the late '70s economy. The '74 election did seal the fate of Southeast Asia, though...

[GOP_1900AD]

By '74 the worst was over. '73 was rock bottom.

[El Gato]

The Democrats were in control of the House and Senate before, during and after Nixon and Ford

That's true. But many of them were Dixiecrats who supported the war effort. '74 tipped the balance in favor of the pinko type Democrats, the very same folks in many cases who now rule the Democratic Party. Others were "Blue Collar" types who also supported the war effort. Sam Nunn would fall into the first category, while Henry "Scoop" Jackson would probably fall into the second category. In those days lots of Democrats were Conservative, most especially on foreign and military matters, maybe a little like a less Socialist Liberman.