Maybe it’s not a worthwhile comparison, but for a few months after 9/11 Rudy Giuliani was a national celebrity. Those few months gave birth to a presidential campaign.

Sarah Palin was a national celebrity for a few weeks following being picked as McCain’s running mate (and has since been defined by series of train wrecks outside the Republican base). Those few weeks when she was a star, though, may bring about a presidential run.

Does anyone think that Palin could fair better than Giuliani? Her natural base is much wider than his would be, but his celebrity didn’t arise from a partisan moment. Moreover, Giuliani’s quasi-fascistic tenure as Mayor of New York City never received the same level of scrutiny concurrent with his celebration as America’s Mayor.

My guess? Palin will start off a less viable presidential candidate than Rudy Giuliani did, but would have more staying power. She’d be in competition with Mike Huckabee for support of the religious right, but there are a lot of men who will continue to support her because she winks at them.

I envision a Palin presidential campaign to be something like the offspring of  the Rudy Giuliani, Fred Thompson, and Bill Richardson presidential campaigns. Like Rudy, it would be driven by an overwhelming sense of entitlement based on short-term celebrity, yet met with the odd reality that the more people get to know the candidate, the less they like her. Like Thompson, it will carry itself by on high theater, but be as substantive as wet cardboard. And like Bill Richardson, it will be so filled with gaffes and misstatements that even her opponents will hang their head in sorrow for the poor gal.

Palin 2012? You betcha!