DEMOCRAT'S STUNNING MORAL TRIUMPH: This just in:

Republicans today worked to put the best face on California Republican House candidate Brian Bilbray's overwhelming near-defeat by Democrat Francine Busby, whose mere garnering of fewer votes constitutes a resounding moral victory that bodes ill for other Republican congressional candidates this fall.

That's my imagined political story of the day. You'll be hearing a lot of this kind of nonsense as the mainstream media trumpets the Democrats' message: Yes, Bilbray won more votes. And, yes, the seat stays Republican. But what really matters is that Democrat candidate Francine Busby came closer to winning than a Democrat should have in that district, oh yes. Busby herself adopts the Paul Hackett template for the "moral victory" spin: "If I get close, then we've made the point that this is no longer a safe seat..."

Archive: "Even if Schmidt barely wins over Hackett, it’s a victory for Hackett, who was told that a Democrat could never win in southwest Ohio. It’s a scary forshadowing for 2006 - if you’re a Republican. Even solid Republican congressional districts will be up for grabs in 2006, with Americans finally getting wise to the widespread corruption of the Republican government. It’s time for a change, and the time is coming soon when the Republicans will be held accountable for their abuse of public office."