At the moment when angry and fearful aides to Senator John McCain have come out swinging at Governor Sarah Palin, accusing her of being a hillbilly, stupid, uninformed, hurting the ticket more than helping it, etc., Scott Rasmussen reports that Palin continues to be highly popular among Republican voters.

69% of Republicans voters, the ones who can know, say that Palin helped John McCain.

Although much has been said in recent days and weeks about Palin’s horrible relationship with Independent and moderate voters, she succeeded in inspiring the base, and getting it actively involved in this election. If Palin would not have been McCain’s running mate, it is likely that he would not have succeeded in getting the base out to the polls as much as we saw last Tuesday.

Republican voters know this. McCain was certainly not considered one of them, and is still considered to be too moderate for many Republican voters. If Palin would not have been his running mate, these Republicans would have stayed home Tuesday, which would have resulted in an even bigger victory for president-elect Barack Obama, or so the far majority of Republican voters say.

In addition to the above, the poll makes clear that conservative commentators, former aides to Sen. McCain and Sen. McCain himself are taking a tremendous risk by going after Palin in the aftermath of the election. 91% (ninety and one) of Republican voters have a favorable view of Palin, including 65% who say their view is Very Favorable. Only 8% have an unfavorable view of her, which is incredibly low for a politician in either party.

When Rasmussen asked which politician registered Republicans hoped would be the GOP’s leader in 2012, 64% said Palin, making her the favorite and leader of the GOP. 12% said former Governor of Arkansas Mike Huckabee, and 11% former Governor of Massachusetts Mitt Romney.

In short, Palin is the representative of the Republican base, their hero, and their hope for the future.

As said, a lot of smears on Palin have been published in recent days, so many even, that even Palin critics – such as myself – have said most of the smears are despicable lies, meant to scapegoat her for Tuesday’s loss. Those doing the smearing, however, should keep in mind that the Republican base is greatly enchanted by Palin, and considers her to be the leader of the Republican Party at this point in time.