McCain says he regrets choosing Sarah Palin as his running mate

The forthcoming final memoir from Senator John McCain, titled The Restless Wave, and a nearly two-hour-long HBO documentary on its way seem to be being used as an opportunity to settle some scores. Jonathan Martin of the New York Times has obtained copies of both books, and has spoken with the ailing senator at his ranch, where he seems to be spending his final days. This leaped out at me:

While he continues to defend Ms. Palin’s performance, Mr. McCain uses the documentary and the book to unburden himself about not selecting Mr. Lieberman, a Democrat-turned-independent, as his running mate.

He recalls that his advisers warned him that picking a vice-presidential candidate who caucused with Democrats and supported abortion rights would divide Republicans and doom his chances.
It is odd indeed to call it “sound advice” and to simultaneously wish he had disregarded it. Logically, this seems to mean that he wishes he had lost, while making a futile gesture towards bipartisanship, or maybe just avoiding contamination with the populism of Sarah Palin. It is an open secret that members of McCain’s campaign sought to sabotage Palin during the campaign, apparently preferring to lose rather than tolerate her views and her persona.

This odd, unsourced paragraph written by Martin offers a clue:

Yet many in Mr. McCain’s own party believe that, by selecting Sarah Palin as his running mate in 2008, he bears at least a small measure of blame for unleashing the forces of grievance politics and nativism within the Republican Party.

I strongly suspect that McCain himself expressed these views to Martin, but asked not to be quoted.

This is McCain's version of Hillary's What Happened.

To his death, we now know that McCain blames his defeat on others.

In my opinion, Sarah Palin was a reasonably good and well-intentioned local politician, though her abrupt resignation as governor seems a bit flaky. However, she was at best unprepared to be vice-president.

Nonetheless, Sarah Palin did not cause McCain to lose. McCain lost because of McCain.

Precisely.

He was the worst GOP presidential candidate in my lifetime and I'm 70. He was terrible.

His campaign was going nowhere until he selected Palin. She immediately brought energy to the race and excited the base. He put them to sleep.

Sarah Palin didn't lose his the election. He did. I voted for the ticket becsuse of her, not him.

Picking Joe Leiberman would have been a mistake. Dim John + slow Joe would not have been a winning ticket against Obama.

My biggest criticism about this whole McPain-dying-thing is that he has the audacity and arrogance to invite and disinvite people to his own funeral, like it's party or something. Only a narcissistic egotist would do that.

There may be a celebration, but it will be from those who are glad this man is finally gone.

My second gripe is the he shows absolutely no class at all by criticizing Palin on his deathbed. He doesn't know what taking the high road means apparently. It shows the shallow pettiness that is John McLame.

Trump had this liberal pegged right off the bat. He's no hero of mine.

McCain says he regrets choosing Sarah Palin as his running mate

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LOL...this senile ol’ coot would have gotten his @zz handed to him by an even greater margin without Palin.

........" all you have to do is look at their deceit when it came to the repeal of Obamacare"......

McCain "thumps down"..........John McCain killed it....

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