Will conservative star’s shine be bad for the GOP?

If the GOP is serious about winning back the White House, they need to find a way to harness the energy, populist appeal and star power of Sarah Palin.

She’s the closest thing to Reagan the GOP has had since Reagan, and when you see her in person, it’s difficult to believe the Republicans had her on the 2008 ticket and didn’t do better than they did.

A sold-out crowd of 6,000 showed up Friday night for Palin’s speech at the annual Salina Area Chamber of Commerce gathering at the Bicentennial Center. The bulk of the crowd probably had never been to a chamber dinner and probably won’t ever go again — unless Palin returns. They were there to see the only person in the GOP who can match President Obama in charisma, and she pushed all the right buttons:

• There was no “Drill, baby, drill,” but there was “Drill here and drill now.” The U.S. needs an “all of the above” energy policy.

• Cut taxes, and get government out of the way of business.

• We need to support democracies, because they don’t go to war with each other.

• The night’s biggest applause — and there were lots of them: “We need a commander in chief, not a professor of constitutional law.”

• Start over with health care reform, and make it bipartisan.

While Palin’s worth to the GOP is impressive, her value to the Democrats might be just as essential. Eventually, Obama and the Democrats are going to have to have someone other than Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity and the talk radio boys to beat up. They need the polarizing Palin to run.

Consider the local effect: If not for Palin’s appearance, there is no way that former Salina Journal editor George Pyle would have sold out the anti-Palin gathering at the Salina Country Club.

Palin might be the Democrats’ best chance to hold onto the White House. As for the GOP, they’re going to have to find a way to exploit Palin’s prodigious appeal — if not as candidate, then in some very public role.