Steele defends Palin against her enemies (and his)

Sarah Palin may be at odds with GOP establishment leaders in Washington, but she does have at least one ally inside the Beltway: Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele.

Steele, who has drawn flak from leading Republicans for the RNC's lousy fundraising numbers this cycle, has emerged as a key Palin defender in recent weeks. He's one of the few Republicans in Washington who has been willing to campaign alongside the former Alaska governor. And he was the only GOP official quoted speaking favorably of Palin in a Politico story Monday about Republican establishment types working to undermine a potential Palin 2012 presidential bid.

"I think the Washington establishment needs to settle down a bit and get ready for what's about to hit them come January, when a significant number of grass-roots congressmen and -women show up and are not prepared to play this game the way they're used to playing it," Steele told Politico. Asked if Palin is electable, Steele replied, "Sure, why not?"

On CNN's "American Morning," Steele was even more blunt, telling Palin detractors to "shut up." "Let's stop the Washington inside games. No one cares about that," Steele said. "Help us make phone calls. Help us dial in the districts around the country so we can turn out our vote. That's what these folks should be doing right now, not focusing on Sarah Palin. 'Cause Sarah Palin doesn't focus on Sarah Palin. She's focused on winning elections and seats tomorrow night."

You can watch the video here, courtesy of CNN:

It's not hard to see why Steele has become such a Palin fan. Her enemies are his enemies. For months, party figures such as Karl Rove have trashed Steele's leadership at the RNC and have plotted to replace him.

But Steele won't go quietly. The GOP chair has spent the last several weeks shoring up support among Republican officials around the country and has announced he plans to seek a second term as head of the party. He hopes to win partly by positioning himself, like Palin, as an anti-establishment party outsider.

If he can get Palin supporters behind him--or even better, win her endorsement—Steele's chances of winning a second term will be greatly improved.

(Photo of Steele and Palin: Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)