I have mixed feelings about this speech. It was very policy-focused. Much more than I would have expected. She covered national defense, foreign policy, spending and taxes, Obama’s inability to be a responsible leader, listening to the people, and getting involved in local government. She was speaking to her most ardent fans tonight, and it was a good opportunity to lay out her views if 2012 is in her plans. Judging from her speech, I would say that 2012 is very, very possible. I look forward to reading the transcripts when someone finally posts them on the web.

Everything she said, I agree with. That’s the reason why I’m a fan of Palin. She’s not afraid to be frank and address the issue that actually concern Americans. Some call it populism. I would call it recognizing what average Americans are actually facing. Unless you work for the Democratic party, and your head is completely in the sand, Palin addressed concerns that Obama seems incapable of acknowledging. I’m just tired of the populist charge against Palin and Tea Parties. It shows how great the chasm is between the Beltway and real issues going on. If Washington was in step with the desires of the American people, the Tea Party movement wouldn’t have started last year. It’s painful to live in the Beltway and understand how the sausage is made but still side with the grassroots.

She said many things that I applaud. Namely that no one person is the leader of the Tea Party movement and that no politician is perfect. That can’t be emphasized enough. Was Palin speaking to her own supporters? If you read this blog more than once, you’ll realize that I am a Palin fan. However, she’s made mistakes. I don’t agree with her on everything, nor should I. There will never be a perfect politician. Even Reagan made his supporters mad on occasion. Unfortunately, Palin is attacked so much by the media and liberals, that deserved criticism is not tolerated within the Sarah-sphere. There’s also an element of blind worship that mirrors Obama adoration. Those two factors worry me.

Her delivery seemed off tonight, which annoyed me. Maybe I’m overly critical, but it sounded unpracticed. She stumbled through it and never found a steady rhythm. This was a speech that needed a TelePrompTer for a better delivery. There was not enough repetition in it to be read with notes. Her convention speech last year shows how well she can speak. I don’t think she practiced this. Stumbling and taking breaks to find your notes are signs of bad preparation. This was a policy-focused speech. She needed to keep her eyes on the audience and refrain from looking down, which hurts credibility and perceptions of confidence. Not surprisingly, Matthew Continetti at the Weekly Standard disagrees with me on this.

Sadly, Obama has ruined the use of TelePrompTers for everyone. They were once a good tool for delivering important speeches. Now, using one is seen as a crutch. Had Palin walked out there using a TelemPrompTer, the media would have attacked her with their double-standard of attacking Palin for breathing and blatantly ignoring idiotic mistakes that Obama makes (“corpsmen” comes to mind).

I’m glad Palin charged attendees with running for local office. Tea Party involvement needs to be more than holding up a sign and complaining about taxes. Government will not change unless you get involved. We’re hearing about Tea Party members running for office, but it’s still an exception rather than the rule. There should be so many Tea Party candidates running for local and state offices that it’s no longer news.

Will she run in 2012? I hope that I only have to say this once. The speech tonight points in that direction. However, we have absolutely no idea what the landscape will be like in 2012. I can’t predict the future, nor can anyone else. If by some chance Congress flips in November, it will likely restore balance that the American people seem to like. That puts us in a completely different position going into 2012 than the unified hatred towards Obama and his liberal cronies we see now. Also, voters are choosing Republicans as an alternative to the bad guys, not because they like them. The GOP has given no evidence that they learned any lessons from the Bush Administration and the great defeats 2006 and 2008. Two years of Big Republicanism will hurt anyone running for POTUS with an R after their name. This is Washington’s favorite sport, but I wish presidential speculation would just stop. In 2006, would anyone have predicted that McCain would be the nominee in 2008?

Townhall and RedState also have reactions up.