Hello, I am a long time reader of the site and I recently had an opinion on one of the post-election narratives of the progressive online community   I have noticed that TPM and many other sites have been mentioning that 60+ of republicans prefer Sarah Palin as the Republican Party's presidential nominee in 2012.  While I share the incredulity and amusement of these poll findings, I think that they are essentially misleading.  First of all, the true power centers in the republican party have consistently been interested in who gives them the best chance to hold/take power, and intelligent republican strategists, and yes we must assume they still exist, cannot truly believe that Palin fulfills that objective.  It is my hunch that Palin is serving as a kind of smoke screen, to draw attention and deflect vetting from those candidates who might legitimately be in line for a run in 2012.  Despite the public grandstanding we see from many of the right's standard-bearers, I have to believe that there is a genuine recognition of the seriousness of the situation that they are in.  If I were in their position I would welcome Governor Palin taking the spotlight, and the abuse, while those on the right got a coherent plan together.  It may be that the shadow architects of the conservative dominance over the last 40 years have lost their mojo but I am not ready to proclaim them dead and gone until they are six feet under.