As if they shouldn’t know. Palin, though no longer viable in a national race, may deserve more sympathy than scorn. Her incoherence, though not new, has worsened, and she shows signs of someone desperate for relevance. As to the Iowa speech, though her teleprompter apparently froze, a technological glitch can’t be blamed for “This is to forego a conclusion.”

But blame for her general collapse beginning in 2008 can be placed in large part upon her own party, which used her and cast her aside.

Not that long ago, Palin was a breathtakingly attractive politician of a rare sort. A governor who had challenged Big Oil — and won — she could wow a crowd like few others. Republican strategists desperate for a running mate for John McCain who brought some razzle-dazzle saw her as the game-changer.