Sarah Palin is Wilting!

The Boston Phoenix has editorialized about the demise of two political entertainers. Sarah Palin's fading -- flower? star? -- and Glenn Beck's self-destructing. Here is the "First case," which covers Palin:

First case: Sarah Palin. Alaska's former half-term governor has been masquerading as a political figure, when in fact she's the nation's highest-profile reality-TV star. Even the generally clueless John McCain has woken up to this. His seemingly diplomatic decision not to endorse any candidate in the 2012 Republican presidential primaries has widely been seen by political observers as an abandonment of his former running mate.

He's not alone. On the eve of last year's national elections, GOP hit man Karl Rove questioned Palin's presidential viability. And conservative egghead Charles Krauthammer concluded in effect that Palin offered more promise than payoff.

Even William Kristol, editor of the neoconservative Weekly Standard, has distanced himself from Palin's road show, saying on MSNBC that he's disappointed that Palin has failed at "framing the policy agenda."

This may not sound like a rebuke, but in political-speak it is the equivalent of saying that a moose could do a better job.

Kristol's kiss-off was guarded. He delivered it in a this-hurts-me-more-than-it-hurts-you tone of voice. He also left enough wiggle room to re-pledge for Palin should she start climbing in the polls.

But on the right, Kristol's agonizing reappraisal is hard to ignore. Kristol was Palin's godfather. He brought her into the Republican inner sanctum and sponsored her deliciously disastrous appointment to McCain's presidential ticket.

Palin's self-pitying remarks after the Tucson massacre claiming she was smeared as a hate monger, her ignorance about the events surrounding the US-USSR space race, and her dysfunctional response to the Egyptian revolution are all more or less standard stuff. ...

... Predicting what Palin will do in real life is, of course, risky business. Odds are that she will do what's good for her ego and her pocketbook. If running for president will satisfy one or both, then get ready for candidate Palin.

Meanwhile, the rest of us can sit back and enjoy the show as the big brains of American conservatism wake up to what most voters realized some time ago: Palin is a menace. ...

The Phoenix' entire editorial is "Sarah Palin Wilts as Glenn Beck Self Destructs."

Bill Kristol has actually abandoned Palin. The Washington Post's Right Turn column reported on December 1st of last year:

... Bill Kristol, editor of The Weekly Standard, (whose magazine has featured a number of conservative contenders and defended Palin from an onslaught of attacks during the campaign) comes right out with it when I ask his take on the state of the presidential race: "Ryan-Odierno 2012!" He adds, "You can quote me on that -- a wish and a prediction." That would be Gen. Ray Odinero, commander of our forces in Iraq. This may come as a shock to Palin fans and to those who perceived her as the favorite of the most influential weekly conservative magazine. But it won't surprise many Republican activists. ...