She brought something to the table when she agreed to be McPain's veep. If they had won, and she was now the veep, she would be positioned to actually have a positive effect and even more so if she managed to take the higher office. She's more legit than those who take a lack of information and decide that the lack of information equates to something substantial.
Had McCain/Palin won in 2008, Palin would have been the real president and Mccain the Veep. Palin would have single-handedly turned around the economy with her policies while McCain took the credit.