I agree, as does Geraghty, as does Omri Ceren. Like I said in the video thread earlier, she’s in Nixon position here. She’s finished in the near term, i.e. 2012, but the public’s memory is short. If she hits the trail for some GOP movers and shakers and reemerges in three years or so with an ability to talk shop on domestic and foreign policy, Republicans won’t care that she flaked out on the governorship. The One only had two years of big-league political experience under his belt when he ran for president, after all; it didn’t hurt him because he convinced voters he knew what he was talking about notwithstanding his greenness. That’s the place she needs to get to, assuming she still has national ambitions.

Of course, if Juan is right and this was all motivated by some looming mega-scandal, disregard everything I just said.