Palin defends Trump's birther talk, plays coy on candidacy

One-time Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin is no stranger to the spotlight — most would say, by choice. She's also familiar with the spotlight's frequent companion: criticism.

Now, possible GOP presidential contender Donald Trump seems to be following in Palin's 24/7 media circus footsteps. Trump is all but unavoidable on Sunday shows, evening newscasts and in the political press these days.

Palin has again taken up her sword against the "lamestream media," this time not in defense of herself: She's swinging for Trump.

"Donald Trump is the one really being treated unfairly, I'd say, in the press," Palin said last night in a Fox News interview. "They're hammering him about the one issue that he has brought up and not been shy about, and that's the birth certificate...Reporters turn around and say, 'that's all he's got, he's only running on the birth certificate issue,' when that's really not the case."

Palin said that Trump is "running on the issue, bottom line, that President Obama is in so far over his head."

Billionaire Trump has been insistent on the subject of Obama's birth certificate, to the point where he said on Monday that he "," and release his financial statements if Obama released a long-form birth certificate.

When asked whether she had considered forming an exploratory committee of her own, Palin responded that it was "too early to declare candidacy."

In the past, she said, "I've just jumped in there and done it when I've known it's the right thing to do, so it's going to be an unconventional run, if I so choose to do that."

Watch Palin's comments about Trump in the video below, originally broadcast April 19, 2011 on Fox News' "Hannity." Video embedded courtesy of Politico.