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.