Sarah's question.

There is one constituency that Sarah Palin can't afford to lose: conservatives.

And there seems to be one issue surrounding her recent announcement that is chafing the buns of these same conservatives.

Quitting early.

Conservatives tend to be a principled bunch. They believe in duty. They believe in honor. The smart ones are happy to sacrifice a bit on each in lieu of playing the political game, but that line is fine.

And how Sarah Palin answers this question over the next few months will determine whether she has a future in the Party:

Why did you abandon your post before finishing even one term?

The problem is, I'm not sure there is such a thing as a satisfactory answer to that question. If she had quit during her 2nd term, no one would even care. But she didn't.

Even me, a Palin supporter from back in April of last year, has grown weary of her. While I understand the political difficulties she faces if she wants to win the nomination in 2012, I am hard pressed to accept abandonment of the post to which you were elected before even finishing one term.

If she wants any future at all, Palin needs to convince me, and others like me, that it was an acceptable move to make. I just don't know how she does that.