Sarah Palin Makes Second Book Tour Stop in Iowa

Dec. 3, 2010 — -- With speculation mounting that Sarah Palin is gearing up for a presidential run, the former Alaska governor visited Iowa for the second time in less than a week on Thursday, continuing her nine-state book tour across the heartland.

Though Iowa is home to the caucuses that jumpstart the presidential nominating season, the 2008 vice presidential nominee continues to assert that her book tour is not political.

As with Palin's other stops along the tour, the press at her book signing in Spirit Lake, Iowa were not allowed to ask questions of Palin as she signed hundreds of copies of "America by Heart: Reflections on Family, Faith and Flag."

Iowa reporters seem to have grown frustrated with the limited access to a potential presidential candidate in waiting.

"If Palin runs in Iowa, she can't just flirt," Des Moines Register political columnist Kathie Obradovitch wrote after Palin's first visit last Saturday.

Todd Dorman of the Cedar Rapids Gazette wrote that Palin's celebrity is yet another example why "retail" politics is on the decline. "Let's be honest, folks. The acidity of big-time politics has been eating away at the quaint veneer of our caucuses for a while now," he wrote.

While the Iowa press corps may be irked, they can't deny that Palin is paying the state close attention. New Hampshire, however, if not feeling the same love.

Does Nobody in New Hampshire Read?

New Hampshire, the first state in the nation to hold a presidential primary, is notably absent from Palin's book tour, a move which has left the New Hampshire's Republican leaders a bit taken aback.

"A lot of people are surprised Palin hasn't made a visit or contact," Manchester GOP chairman Cliff Hurst told the Boston Herald. "Maybe she's getting enough press as it is."

Other Republican presidential hopefuls have already been canvassing the state, according to the Boston Herald, including Newt Gingrich, Rudy Giuliani, Rep. Mike Pence of Indiana, former Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania, Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney.

Sarah Palin Sells Books in Iowa, Skips New Hampshire

But is Palin in danger of alienating New Hampshire voters by not spending time in the granite state? ABC News' Political Director Amy Walter said that unlike the states on Palin's book tour, New Hampshire might be harder for her to win over regardless of how often she visits.

"The reality is that New Hampshire is going to be a very tough sell for Palin, even among the GOP faithful. Unlike Iowa or South Carolina that has a deep base of conservative voters, the New Hampshire primary is open to independent voters meaning that the electorate is much more moderate," Walter explained.