My own feeling is that Sarah Palin inadvertently helped the Republicans to lose the last election...not that she didn't appeal to a significant number of people who voted Republican...but I still think she was a factor that did harm to the Republican ticket in an overall sense, and so did John McCain.

I'm grateful to both of them for leading their party to defeat. ;-) I would have been downright horrified if the Republicans had won again after the last 8 years of George Bush. (and I'm no fan of the Democratic Party, God knows!...but it could be worse than them, and it has been) Most of the world would have been horrified (with the notable exception of Israel). The sigh of relief and thanksgiving heard around the world when Barack Obama won that election was palpable. It was like Christmas morning on the day after...smiles and celebration to be seen everywhere.