Sarah Palin's Bus Tour Will Be in Iowa This Week

She'll arrive before voting begins in the Ames straw poll Saturday, pulling attention from 2012 candidates

Sarah Palin's bus tour of America -- which just so happened to be cruising through early primary states -- will restart after several months off. In June, the roadtrip was suspended indefinitely, but this week, naturally, she's headed to Iowa, CNN's Peter Hamby reports. Palin will arrive in the state just before her potential 2012 rivals fight for their political lives at the Ames straw poll Saturday, a vote that could be a campaign-ender for some candidates. Palin's appearance will likely siphon off some of the attention for which they're struggling.

Palin is headed for the Iowa State Fair, which Hamby notes is a half-hour's drive from Ames, where the Republican candidates will have their third debate Thursday night.

The former Alaska governor was in Iowa in June for the premiere of her biopic. She'll head back again over Labor Day weekend for a Tea Party rally.