[Lakeshark]

I wonder what would happen if September rolled around, and Palin announced that she wasn’t running?

I have no idea if she's going to run, and I think you don't either. If she says she's not running, I'll move on to another candidate as will most Palin supporters. Obama has to be defeated, he has to go, I think that's a sentiment that all of us can get behind.

Fortunately for her, she's enough of a presence to continue as a great and positive force for conservatism. I don't think the candidates you support will be able to say that if they get knocked out of the race (and trust me, Bachmann WILL get knocked out and early).

So.....

What will all of you say if she announces she's running? I'm going to laugh my butt off at all of you if she does.

I'll leave you with one terrifying thought for you to contemplate, she sucked all the oxygen out of Iowa today....from Ben Smith:

benpolitico Ben Smith
by RealClearScott
“Palin still wandering the fair, being mobbed by fans...if she was coming to test the water...it’s warm.”

[Titus Quinctius Cincinnatus]

I have no idea if she's going to run, and I think you don't either.

Oh I know whether she is or not. But she specifically requested that I not tell you, Lakeshark.

[Windflier]

"I wonder what would happen if September rolled around, and Palin announced that she wasn’t running?"

I don't think you have to wonder too deeply about the effect that would create. Actually, I don't think it's a sincere question. I think you know that millions upon millions of people across this country would be devastated by that.

We staunch Palin supporters on this site don't even represent the tip of the iceberg of Palin supporters, but I can tell you that our loss would cast an enormous pall over this place. We'd move on, but not without a degree of regret that would be very deep.

Now that we've answered the obvious, let me just say that the hypothetical you posed is highly unlikely, given everything that Palin's been up to for the last year. Perhaps you need a concrete announcement from her to sort it all out, but honestly, a bit of observation, reason, and deduction, will tell you everything you need to know.

She's running. If she weren't, she would have said so a long time ago. She loves and respects her fellow Americans far too much to lead them into a dead end.

Besides, the American public would consider her a complete fraud if she waited this long into the process to simply say she's not running. She'd lose every last shred of credibility if she stepped out now. Do you really think she hasn't figured all of this out?