CONGRATULATIONS! IT'S A MEME!

I think the Republicans will win the election because the Democrats are now so positioned left and I think it will be very hard for them to overcome that.

--Sean Hannity, June 11

I said last week that this was becoming a meme and I repeated it last night, and now ABC News makes it official:

Democratic Candidates Moving Left

As the Democratic presidential candidates gather in Washington to make their pitch to party activists this week, "liberal" is suddenly no longer a dirty word.

In recent months, virtually the entire Democratic field has tacked left -- not just on the Iraq War, but on health care, taxes, energy issues and gay rights....

Appeal to Liberal Base Could Cost Them Independent Votes

...some observers say that the candidates' zeal to appeal to the party's liberal base could cost them in the general election with the independent-minded voters they'll need to win.

That is a particular concern for Democrats if Republicans nominate a candidate who could claim the vast middle of the electorate -- a social moderate such as former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, or a candidate with a long history of reaching out to independents such as Arizona Sen. John McCain....

Oh, good grief. I hate these people.

Let's review:

Mitt Romney has moved to the right on abortion, stem cells, gay rights, immigration, and campaign finance reform.

Rudy Giuliani has moved to the right on abortion, the flat tax, and gun control.

Fred Thompson has moved to the right on abortion.

John McCain has moved to the right on (partial list) gay marriage, overturning Roe v. Wade, the Bush tax cuts, campaign finance reform, and the religious right.

And that's just off the top of my head.

And every single one of the major GOP candidates is far to the right of the American people (but not the crazy-base crowd in the GOP) on the war.

But as usual, according to your "liberal media," it's Democrats who have gone too far to one side, and Democrats who are pandering to the base.

And as usual, wherever Republicans are is declared to be the center.

Bookmark this story. This story carries the DNA of everything the press corps will do between now and November '08. That's why I guarantee the next president will be a Republican.