The Republican Governor’s Association meeting this week was, if you listen to Palin booster Bill Kristol, definitely where the 2012 campaign began

It’s great to be here at the annual meeting at the Future Presidential Candidates Association," joked conservative commentator and editor William Kristol.

Among the national-caliber talent assembled: Tim Pawlenty of Minnesota, Charlie Crist of Florida, Haley Barbour of Mississippi and Bobby Jindal of Louisiana.

But the one followed by mobs of reporters, awarded a time slot to make a speech and dubbed a "rock star" by cable news outlets was the Alaska governor, the GOP’s erstwhile vice presidential pick.

Even when Ms. Palin wasn’t physically in the room, "Sarah is in the room," quipped Texas Gov. Rick Perry, outgoing RGA chairman.

Not quite true, Governor Goodhair. Stephen Hayes of Mr. Kristol’s Weekly Standard found a room Sarah wasn’t in

With the press conference concluded, the male governors, none of whom had been asked a question, were cleared from the stage like props. On my way to the grand ballroom for Palin’s big speech, I looked for a restroom. I ran into nine of the governors as they emerged from some back hallway to hit the head. I joined them. The bathroom was crowded. The first governors claimed the spots–two at urinals and two in the stalls, doors open. Perry was just behind me, along with several other governors. He did not wait quietly.

"Oh, Hoeven! I’m not shaking your hand when you’re done," he shouted to North Dakota governor John Hoeven who was wrapping up in a stall. "This is not the Minneapolis Airport!"

Someone else noticed Alabama governor Bob Riley in the other stall. "Wow, Riley really has a wide stance!"

Perhaps more interesting than what they said, was what they did not. Although several would later grouse privately about their role at the press conference, there was no Palin bashing in the john.

When the subject veered from anonymous gay Republican sex in public rest rooms, though, Palin didn’t do as well. She had her fans in the audience — that nice Mr. Malcolm at the LA Times spotlights her standing ovations (in a column which, for perspective, refers to George W. Bush as "more pragmatic than dogmatic") — but some of the Governors onstage were a lot less impressed

Some Republican governors tell CNN they were not particularly happy with the way the Republican Governors Association press conference was executed Thursday, saying that they agreed to go as a show of GOP governors’ unity — but they ended up feeling like silent Palin supporters, since it was clearly a press conference called for her.

The GOP governors spoke to CNN on condition of anonymity.

One called it awkward: “I’m sure you could see it on some of our faces.”

Another Republican governor eyeing a presidential run in 2012 told CNN the event was “odd” and “weird,” and said it “unfortunately sent a message that she was the de facto leader of the party."

We can definitely absolve Governor Jindal here. He skipped the unity conference.

A few named folks weren’t impressed either

When a reporter asked whether they would have been comfortable with Palin as president, there was a long silence. “I think Gov. Palin is an extremely talented person, and she’s going to be one of the key voices of the party, for Republicans, for a long time to come,” Pawlenty answered. “All I can say is that John McCain made very clear that one of his key criteria for selecting a VP running mate was that that person was ready to be president on day one. So in his judgment, she met that criteria, and he felt strongly about that, and so we’ll have to defer to his judgment and that process.”

It wasn’t exactly a ringing endorsement, and none of the others at the table — Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman, former eBay CEO and top McCain aide Meg Whitman, and former OMB chief Rob Portman — said specifically that they would have been comfortable with Palin as president.

 and she was on the receiving end of at least one ringing soundbite to the jaw

During Wednesday’s opening lunch, Pawlenty — a finalist to join McCain on the GOP ticket — dismissed one of Palin’s signature lines by calling for an expansive approach to energy development.

" ‘Drill, baby, drill,’ is not, by itself, an energy policy," Pawlenty said.

No matter who else may desert her, though, the Weekly Standard has a candle burning in the window for Governor Palin. Mr. Kristol, ever a fan of politicians who govern with their intestines, is hopeful about her future, and the party’s

And, of course, politics isn’t just–or even mostly–about ideas. It’s also about political leadership. To see Sarah Palin at the Republican Governors Association was to wonder at a natural politician. Among her peers she may be in a class by herself–like Reagan or Barack Obama…

Palin is a phenomenon, and her future is unpredictable. There are plenty of other Republican governors and ex-governors who would be competent and plausible nominees in 2012. The candidate in 2012 is unlikely to be the problem.

and Mr. Hayes is looking on the bright side

Sources close to Palin say she will continue to study national issues–including foreign policy and national security–so that she will be in a better position to talk about them in the future.

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