By this point, America is probably about Sarah-Palined out, at least for this round.  Everyone has an opinion on her announcement, and her future.   I find the most interesting pieces over the past few days have come from women — like  Ruth Marcus and Amanda Fortini — while wishing Peggy Noonan had weighed in, as well as Nancy Gibbs, whose piece on Governor Palin last September was one of the most thoughtful pieces out there.  Most of the commentary coming from men are muscular attempts to determine what this all means for her political future — women have taken a much longer and insightful look at the story behind the story.  

The person I found myself agreeing with the most was the host of NPR’s Tell Me More, Michel Martin, who came up with this gem at the end of a recent show.   Martin is probably best known for the work she did alongside Ted Koppel on ABC’s Nightline.  Today, through her daily one-hour show, she brings one of the most unique and nuanced voices to our national media. What I like most about Martin is that she gives everyone a chance — unlike many journalists whose impartiality comes into question whenever they adopt a “pundit voice,” her pieces are never reflexively ideological.  Her commentaries tend not to circulate as broadly after they air–she just does her job well and posts the results on her website.  I, for one, would like to see her out there more.  She’s always thoughtful, always very smart, and has dedicated her show to bringing new voices to our national debate.

This won’t be the last word on Governor Palin.  But so far, it’s one of the smartest.

My own sense about Governor Palin is that she will be the Rudy Giuliani of 2012.  There’s just something about her:  the more people get to know her, like Rudy, the less they seem to like her.