Conservative commentator George Will, conservative columnist Charles Krauthammer and RedState blogger Erick Erickson are the latest GOPers to denounce former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's chances of becoming president in 2012.

Will said on ABC's Jan. 2 episode of "This Week" that a Palin nomination could act as a "secret weapon" for President Barack Obama.

"The president's secret weapon may be the Republican nominating electorate, because there is one person, high in the polls, Sarah Palin, who cannot be elected president because she cannot compete where elections are decided -- in the collar counties outside Chicago, Montgomery County outside of Philadelphia -- just can't compete there," Will said.

In an Internet-only interview on "The Green Room" following the show, Will added, "She had to go back and be a successful governor of Alaska, and she had to do her homework. She's done neither. The hope is that perhaps she's making so much money -- and she's a very astute businesswoman -- that she won't want to take the pay-cut to become a mere presidential candidate."

On the Dec. 31 episode of "Inside Washington," Krauthammer said outside of Palin's "very strong core constituency," she is "rather weak."

"If you talk to Republicans, I don’t think there are what, more than one in three who would tell you she has a chance of winning the presidency or even the nomination,” he said.

Krauthammer called Obama a "vulnerable" candidate and said Palin has "no chance of winning a general election" with negatives of "over 50 percent."

In a RedState blog post, Erickson wrote, "[R]ight now I am not excited by or inspired by any of [the potential nominees] save Sarah Palin and, as much as I love Sarah Palin, I am adamantly convinced that she cannot win given the ridiculous smears and hate thrown her way by Democrats and, frankly, by a lot of Republicans. She has been made radioactive."

Several high profile Republicans including Karl Rove and Ann Coulter have been outspoken in their disapproval or doubt of Palin's ability to represent the party in the White House.

Former Bush administration official Peter Wehner said, "Virtually every time Ms. Palin speaks out, she reinforces some of the worst impressions or deepest concerns many of us have about her. If she were to become the voice and representative of the GOP and the modern conservatism movement, both would suffer a massive rejection."

A recent Time magazine cover story on Palin explores whether the Mama Grizzly wants to be president or just a celebrity:

A presidential candidate used to need a central headquarters and satellite offices in all the early primary states; now all a contender like Palin needs is a cable modem. Working largely from her lakeside house in Wasilla, Alaska, Palin raised millions of dollars, produced three viral Internet videos and endorsed more than seven dozen Republican candidates (most of whom prevailed).  

At the same time, however, she worked more on her profile than on her platform, releasing her second best-selling book in two years and starring in her own cable television series and in the process putting as much as $13 million in the bank. Palin has been particularly adroit at keeping her name front and center on both stages, whether jabbing Washington Republicans for their pork-barrel spending or turning up in Hollywood to watch her daughter Bristol advance to the final round of Dancing with the Stars.

In a reassessment of Palin's chances of winning the 2012 nomination, statistician Nate Silver who runs The New York Times’ Five Thirty Eight blog writes, "[A]lthough I’m agnostic on the question as to how much 'elite' opinion ultimately matters (it matters less than elites think it does, surely!) — it can sometimes be contagious, shaping the way that some broader spectrum of the public perceives a candidate."

In the Washington Post, Jonathan Bernstein explores if Palin's public prominence is doing her a disservice, "Yes, she did give at least a couple of Serious Policy Speeches, but I don't get the sense that they got any traction at all, not with all of the tweets and the reality shows and the books stuff with platitudes.  Her fans, of course, never needed convincing, but for the rest -- and, here, I'm really focused on Republicans -- is there anyone who wrote her off as a lightweight who is now giving her a new look because of her speech on the Fed?  I very much doubt it." 

A CNN/Opinion Research Corporation survey released Dec. 28 shows Palin slipping in the public eye when it comes to the Republican Party's 2012 nomination.

Forty-nine percent of Republicans said they would support Palin--"a huge 18-point drop since December of 2008, when two-thirds of GOPers said they were likely to support Palin," said CNN Polling Director Keating Holland. "It also puts her well behind potential rivals Mike Huckabee and Mitt Romney, and a bit behind Newt Gingrich as well." 

It appears the tide has turned since 2008--two-thirds of Republicans now say they would support former Arkansas governor and 2008 GOP presidential candidate Huckabee as the 2012 nominee.

Huckabee is heavily weighing another run for the White House, as is former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney.

The survey shows 59 percent of Republicans saying they're likely to suppot Romney as the 2012 nominee. Fifty-four percent said they would support former House Speaker Newt Gingrich.

Palin has yet to officially confirm a bid for the White House, but she often alludes to it.

During her nationwide Tea Party Express tour, Palin hinted at a 2012 run.

"Mr. Obama, you’re next, because now we can see 2012 from our house," she said.