Mitt Romney is taking hits for lurching to the right, but a new Diageo/Hotline poll shows his WH '08 strategy may be working.

-- Romney's name I.D. among GOPers remains less than 1/2 that of McCain or Giuliani, according to the survey, but comparable numbers of GOP voters view him as "conservative." The ex-MA gov also has the lowest "liberal" rating of the three.

-- Of course, the Right's still not sold on their top tier. Less than 1/4 of GOPers describe any of them as conservative. Other unique hurdles each one faces: More than half of GOPers say Giuliani's a moderate, but only 1/3 even know he's pro-choice ... yet. Also just 26% of GOP voters know Romney's a Mormon. And slightly more than half of all voters (60% of GOPers) think McCain is 64 or younger; He'd be 72 at his 1/09 swearing-in.

-- Meanwhile, Dems maintain a key edge in voter excitement, reflected in an open-ended question about preferred '08ers. Clinton alone pulls the same support as all 3 top GOPers combined (and Obama is the only other candidate in double-digits). Is that connected to the relatively small number of GOPers who think Giuliani/McCain/Romney are "conservative?"