WASHINGTON — Sarah Palin said Sunday she might run for president in 2012 if she decides it would be good for her family and the country.
Fresh from a speech to conservative activists at a “tea party” gathering in Nashville, Tenn., the former Alaska governor said President Barack Obama could be defeated in 2012, that she is boning up on foreign and national policy and that she would run if it felt right.
“I would,” she said on Fox News, where she is a paid contributor. “I would if I believed that that is the right thing to do for our country and for the Palin family. Certainly, I would do so.”
She added: “I think that it would be absurd to not consider what it is that I can potentially do to help our country. I don’t know if it’s going to be ever seeking a title, though. It may be just doing a darn good job as a reporter or covering some of the current events.”
Asked how she would make the decision, Palin said she “thankfully” has plenty of time. She noted that other potential candidates for the Republican presidential nomination know more about the issues.
“Right now, I’m looking at . . . other potential candidates out there who are strong,” she said. “They’re in a position of having kind of this luxury of having more information at their fingertips right now.”
She confirmed reports she is receiving daily e-mailed briefings from people in Washington on events and issues there.
Asked whether that signaled plans to run for president, she said she had no idea what the conventional path to a candidacy would involve.
“I don’t know how it works,” she said. “I’m just appreciative of having some good information at my fingertips right now.”
She said Obama could win re-election if he is seen as a tough president in a time of war. She said, for example, that he could play “the war card” by attacking Iran or express stronger support for Israel.
“If he decided to toughen up and do all that he can to secure our nation and our allies, I think people would perhaps shift their thinking a little bit and decide, ‘Well, maybe he’s tougher than . . . he is today,’ and there wouldn’t be as much passion to make sure that he doesn’t serve another four years.”
But he could be defeated if he maintains his current course, she said.
“He wouldn’t win,” she said.
