John McCain: Choosing Sarah Palin In 2008 'The Best Decision I've Ever Made'

WASHINGTON -- John McCain has no regrets about the biggest and most controversial decision of his unsuccessful 2008 presidential campaign. Speaking to Sean Hannity on Tuesday evening in New Hampshire, McCain said naming Sarah Palin his running mate was "still the best decision I've ever made."

Much drama has occurred since the McCain-Palin ticket lost to Barack Obama and Joe Biden. In 2009, several members of McCain's campaign team trashed Palin in a Vanity Fair article, and in 2010, McCain's daughter Meghan claimed Palin caused "stress, drama, panic" on the campaign trail.

McCain was on Hannity's show to promote his 2008 rival, Mitt Romney, whose Republican presidential candidacy he endorsed last week, after Romney won the Iowa caucus by eight votes.

Palin, who gained a fervent following among bedrock conservatives, was widely tipped to be a candidate in this year's race. But the former Alaska governor delayed her decision through most of 2011, allowing other conservative candidates like the seemingly Palin-inspired Michele Bachmann to gain traction.

Palin eventually announced she would not seek the presidency in October, saying that "at this time I can be more effective in a decisive role to help elect other true public servants to office -- from the nation’s governors to congressional seats and the presidency."

She has not yet endorsed a presidential candidate.

Comments

[MiddletownHal]

11:49 AM on 01/14/2012

He's confused & has been since long before he was a POW. It must be horrible to realize how the Vietnam War was a thorough waste of time then to comprehend how your time as a POW was meaningless.

[jebuff]

06:13 AM on 01/14/2012

And who really cares? McCain should bow out of the public eye becomes he becomes even more of an embarrassment. Palin's too stupid for anything but FOXNews. She should stay there, providing comic relief to anyone who cares to watch.

[ILB]

11:55 PM on 01/13/2012

Hilarious! Just hilarious!

[Trapezoid]

10:43 PM on 01/12/2012

McCain says, "selecting Sarah Palin (in 2008) was the best decision I've ever made". That being the case, one can only wonder about the worst decision he ever made.

Nevertheless, the 2012 Republican candidate will also have an opportunity to demonstrate superior VP selection judgement. And of course, Sarah Palin will be available to forge a winning combination of enormous wealth and limited intellect.

There is some risk of failure. But with the help of Super PACs and teleprompters, this contraption might actually float. This combination might even play in Peoria! The question is, what do the rest of us stand to gain from big money and small minds in charge of everything?

[vobox3343]

01:51 PM on 01/12/2012

That's true in a way. Alaska's the better for it and, we might not have ever known how utterly clueless she was and might have made a mistake voting for, to many, a pretty face. thank you, Mr. McCain for allowing her a complete vetting. We'll be forever grateful.

[SurrealSequences]

01:10 PM on 01/12/2012

Yes it was: "still the best decision I've ever made" simply because he knew that he was not presidential material and picking Palin would guarantee that he loose the election.

[helmcc814]

01:01 PM on 01/12/2012

Poor John. Imagine all those years in politics and public service (?) to die with Sarah Palin as your ever-lasting legacy and claim to fame!

[sbogiam]

12:46 PM on 01/12/2012

He was just after planting his flag pole in some strange.

[RichardinJax]

12:45 PM on 01/12/2012

McCain is using the same judgment to make this statement that he used in picking Palin. I never expected a word of honesty out of this phony. Nor the courage to admit what a Pandora's box he opened for his campaign and America.

[John Orr]

12:36 PM on 01/12/2012

The sad thing for John is, he's right.

[CanyonWren]

12:34 PM on 01/12/2012

He's lost his marbles, and most of his hair.

[proudcalib]

12:34 PM on 01/12/2012

If you say so, John. It's also the most likely reason you're not in the White House today.

[johntangier]

12:29 PM on 01/12/2012

YEAH PALIN WAS VERY DISSAPOINTED THAT THEY LOST, SHE WANTED TO GET IN THERE WITH ALL THOSE SENATORS AND MAKE GREAT POLICY DECISIONS.

[katgal1232]

03:46 PM on 01/12/2012

She has had so much foreign policy experience waiving to "Russia".

[treadway123]

12:26 PM on 01/12/2012

She is the direct reason he lost! Romney will lose it because of him self!

[johntangier]

12:26 PM on 01/12/2012

MCCAIN HAS TO DEBEND A POOR DECISION AS IT TOTALY REFLECTS ON HIS THINKING. AND HIS ABILITY TO MAKE WISE DECISIONS, BUT THATS OK WE KNOW SARAH COST YOU THAT ELECTION.