Palin: ‘I do have the fire in my belly’

Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin (R) hasn’t decided whether to run for president, but she insisted Thursday she has the “fire in my belly” to do it. 

Fox News’s Greta van Susteren asked Palin, who has provided few hints about her decisionmaking process or timeline, if she has the “fire in your belly” to run, citing former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee’s claim that his “heart says no” to another presidential bid.

{mosads}”I think my problem is that I do have the fire in my belly,” she said. “I’m so adamantly supportive of the good traditional things about America and our free enterprise system and I want to make sure that America is put back on the right track and we only do that by defeating Obama in 2012.”

Palin, the 2008 GOP vice presidential nominee, is one of a few potential GOP candidates still sitting on the sidelines, along with Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels and Rep. Michele Bachmann (Minn.). 

The ex-governor has said she is waiting to see how the field shapes up before she makes a decision.

“It’s a matter for me for some practical, pragmatic decisions that have to be made,” Palin added, saying she is concerned about public scruntiny of members of her family.

Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour last month opted not to run, saying a campaign would take “absolute fire in the belly” — something he could not offer “with certainty.”