This post has been updated.
Sarah Palin's political action committee released a web ad on Friday promoting her upcoming bus tour, which is set to launch from Washington, DC this weekend.
The event, which will take Palin across the eastern United States, is fueling speculation that the former Alaska governor could run for president in the next election cycle.
HuffPost's Jon Ward reported on Thursday:
"Starting this weekend, Sarah Palin will embark on a One Nation tour of historical sites that were key to the formation, survival, and growth of the United States of America," said Tim Crawford, treasurer of Palin's fundraising group, SarahPAC, in a statement provided to The Huffington Post. "The tour will originate in Washington DC and will proceed north up the east coast. More information will follow."
Palin will kick things off Sunday by taking part in the "Rolling Thunder" motorcycle ride -- comprised mainly of U.S. veterans of the Vietnam War -- that begins at the Pentagon and concludes at the Vietnam Memorial on the National Mall.
However, Rolling Thunder director Ted Shpak signaled during an appearance on MSNBC on Friday that Palin was never invited to integrate the launch of her bus tour into the event.
"This is not a political event," he said, according to the New York Daily News. "Maybe she's coming because she knows we have half a million people coming ... We're not endorsing anybody and she's not speaking on our stage."
Shpak added, however, that if Palin wanted to jump on a motorcycle and participate in the ride, she would be welcome to do so.
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However, Ben Smith at Politico reports:
"An invitation had been extendd to governor and she accepted," said the group's National Parliamentarian, Mike De Paulo. "She was not invited to speak -- she wass invited to participate. She wanted to experience the run and see who we are and what we're about."
De Paulo said she'd been invited by an Alaska veteran leader, and a Palin staffer forwarded an email confirming that.
"The invitation is still open for her to ride and speak at the Rolling Thunder event," Joseph N. Fields III, the Chair of the State of Alaska Veterans Advisory Council wrote Palin in one email, dated May 13.
The AP reports:
A Gallup poll of Republicans, taken before Palin announced the bus tour, showed former Massachusetts Mitt Romney favored by 17 percent. Palin followed closely at 15 percent. Ron Paul had 10 percent, Newt Gingrich 9 percent, Herman Cain 8 percent, Tim Pawlenty 6 percent, and Michele Bachmann and Jon Huntsman 5 percent each.
Below, the video released by SarahPAC on Friday.
WATCH: