WASHINGTON -- Sarah Palin said Sunday that history was on her side when she claimed Paul Revere's famous ride was intended to warn both British soldiers and his fellow colonists.
"You realize that you messed up about Paul Revere, don't you?" "Fox News Sunday" anchor Chris Wallace asked the potential 2012 presidential candidate.
"I didn't mess up about Paul Revere," replied Palin, a paid contributor to the network.
"Part of his ride was to warn the British that were already there. That, hey, you're not going to succeed. You're not going to take American arms. You are not going to beat our own well-armed persons, individual, private militia that we have," she added. "He did warn the British."
Palin, who again said she has not decided whether to run for president, was asked about the Revolutionary War hero during a stop Thursday in Boston on her East Coast bus tour.
"He who warned the British that they weren't gonna be taking away our arms by ringing those bells, and making sure as he's riding his horse through town to send those warning shots and bells that we were going to be sure and we were going to be free, and we were going to be armed."
Palin's brush with the nation's history came toward the end of her "One Nation" bus tour, which generated intense interest as she traveled from Washington to New England. Along the way, she refused to say whether she was running for president.
"I'm publicizing Americana and our foundation and how important it is that we learn about our past and our challenges and victories throughout American history, so that we can successfully proceed forward," Palin said in the broadcast interview. "It's not a campaign tour."
There's no ambiguity about the interest Palin generates.
Palin's closely watched bus trip is a key example. Its camera-ready events competed for coverage in the same week and region as former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney's formal entry into the race. His candidacy is perhaps the most formidable of the emerging field.
Asked Sunday whether he could envision supporting Palin for president, Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, a former hopeful, told "Face the Nation" on CBS: "If Barack Obama was the head of the other ticket, I could."
For her part, Palin was contrite.
"I apologize if I stepped on any, any of that PR that Mitt Romney needed or wanted that day," Palin said. "I do sincerely apologize. I didn't mean to step on anybody's toes."
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