Sarah Palin, left, posed with celebrity look-alike impersonator Cecilia Thompson during a tour of Boston’s North End neighborhood today.

Sarah Palin criticizes Romney on health care during Freedom Trail tour

By Michael Levenson and John R. Ellement, Globe Staff

Even as she insisted that she was not trying to undermine Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign announcement today, Sarah Palin sharply criticized Romney’s universal health care law while touring historic sites on Romney’s home turf in Massachusetts.

“In my opinion, any mandate coming from government is not a good thing,” Palin told reporters during a visit to the Bunker Hill Monument in Charlestown. The law will be one of the reasons that it “will be a big challenge” for Romney to appeal to Tea Party supporters.

“It’s tough for a lot of us independent Americans to accept [the mandate] because we have great faith in the private sector and our own families and our own business men and women making decisions for ourselves, not any level of government telling us what to do,’’ said Palin, who is a potential challenger to Romney for the Republican presidential nomination.

Palin appeared to be headed to New Hampshire just after noon. Romney announced his candidacy in Stratham this afternoon.

“Coincidental that we’re in the same territory at the same time,’’ said Palin. “But more power to Mitt … and best of luck to him.’’