Obama and Palin Will Battle for Iowa's Love

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Ray Gustini 538 Views Jun 27, 2011

Between "civic duty calls" in Alaska, not talking about her plans for 2012, and touring the eastern seaboard of the United States in a large bus, Sarah Palin has a very busy summer calendar. So what does it mean politically that she and husband Todd will be in Pella, Iowa tomorrow night for the premiere of The Undefeated, the new pro-Palin documentary (set to open across the country in AMC Theaters in mid-July) that filmmaker Stephen K. Bannon has described, at various points, as "a real-life version of Mr. Smith Goes to Washington," "a movie that will go off like an atomic bomb in the Republican primary," and "sub-textual"?

Possibly nothing. At The Daily Beast, Sushannnah Walshe speculates that the appearance "will kick off the second leg of her bus tour" and "reignite speculation that Palin will jump into the 2012 race." But doesn't pretty much everything the former Alaska governor does ignite speculation about her 2012 prospects?

Palin's statement announcing she and Todd would attend certainly make it sound like they're gearing up for a rally. Rather, the statements said she was "very excited to visit historic Pella and its opera house and look forward to seeing the finished film for the first time with fellow Americans from the heartland.” Bannon also added that Palin was "attracted to the old opera house [as a venue for the premiere] and that it’s going to be a low key event in a terrific, old historic town.”

Another factor that might stop tomorrow's premiere from turning into a Palin stump speech: President Barack Obama is also going to be in Iowa on Tuesday, touring Alcoa Davenport Works Factory located 150 miles east of Pella. He plans to give a speech on "the critical role that the manufacturing sector plays in the American economy," according to USA Today.

Want to add to this story? Let us know in comments or send an email to the author at rgustini at theatlantic dot com. You can share ideas for stories on the Open Wire.

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