FORT BRAGG (AP) — Former Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin promised to limit her enthusiasm during her visit Monday to the home of the Army’s 82nd Airborne Division and Green Berets.

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Army officials said more than 1,200 people lined up outside a Fort Bragg store where Palin arrived shortly after 11 a.m. to sign copies of her new memoir. She waved and greeted some supporters but made no statement before walking inside and quickly starting to sign books.

Several military personnel craned to take photos with cameras and phones as Palin arrived. About a dozen fans had camped out for hours.

Rosemary Haney, 63, of Fayetteville, whose husband spent 26 years in the military, arrived nearly 24 hours before Palin’s scheduled appearance. Haney hopes Palin will run for president in 2012.

“I think she’ll run and I think she’ll get it,” Haney said. “She’s what we need for the country.”

Defense Department regulations limit the appearances of politicians but the Army agreed to let Palin on post because she is not campaigning, said Col. Billy Buckner.

“She fell into a little bit of a gray area,” Buckner said. “She’s not a political figure per se, but she certainly carries a tremendous amount of interest and influence across the country.”

Army spokesmen said Palin will not make a speech, pose for photos, or personalize notes in the books.

The Army has worried Palin’s appearance would prompt political grandstanding against President Barack Obama. That fear initially led post commanders to limit news organizations interested in covering Palin’s appearance, though the restrictions were later dropped.

Fort Bragg spokesman Tom McCollum told WTVD that sales of Palin’s book at the post store have been weak so far.