(CNN) – Sen. John McCain made a mistake in 2008 by picking then-Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as his running mate, former Vice President Dick Cheney said in an interview that aired Sunday.
Cheney led the vice presidential search for Gerald Ford in 1976, and again for George W. Bush in 2000. That last search resulted in Cheney himself being selected, and he served as Bush's number two for eight years.
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On Sunday, Cheney said Palin failed to meet the number one requirement for a vice president: a readiness to step into the top job if needed.
"Based on her background, she was only governor for two years, I don't think she passed that test of being ready to take over. And I think that was a mistake," Cheney said in an interview with ABC News.
Cheney, who said he knows and likes Palin, argued that considerations about which demographic a potential candidate could help pull in clouded the 2008 decision to put Palin on the ticket.
"Those are important issues but they should never be allowed to override that first proposition and I think that's one of the problems that McCain had," Cheney said.
READ MORE: McCain, Liz Cheney push back on Palin 'mistake'
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Wow, write this day on the calendar; Cheney actually uttering a truth! It's the first, so, take note. It will be the last until he meets his maker, I'm sure.
That all Republican do Is make Mistake, you have BUSH and Cheney go to war against Iraq for weapon of WMD that wasn't there. Than you have Saran Palin and that was a big Mistake ,and NOW you have the Republican Control Congress that does nothing at all. And that Is a Mistake. Any body that think that the Republican are great ,than you are a mistake.In the last 12 years name one thing the Republican have done Right, and that will be NOTHING. The Republican keep giving the Rich Tax break and said It create jobs Is just plan dumb. The Rich have had these tax Break now for 12 years and where are the JOBS. And you Republican are going to find out that Mitt Romney Is a Mistake Too.
Captain Obvious strikes again.
"REPUBLICAN ARE THE GREATEST
Palin was not a mistake. Voting for the worst Prsident in history was a huge mistake. Vote 100% for Republicans this November, Vote for Mitt Romney for President and get this Country back to Capitalism. Socialism does not work."
Thanks for the morning chuckle.
Cheney was a mistake too. So, what else is new?
Cheney is to Haliburton as Mitt is to Bain!! We refuse to go back to the Bush/Cheney years! FORWARD WITH OBAMA!!!
You think? What an eye opening revelation!!
I agree with Cheney....Picking Palin was a mistake, and has that mistake EVER paid off for her, litterally!! Then GWB made even a bigger mistake for picking him. And the Supreme Court made the biggest mistake of all by picking Bush. Cheney hasn't got enough constructive things to do, so he continues to use his time running his mouth. He had his chance to get it right, but didn't, so he needs to use his time now helping the needy....like serving in a food bank or playing Grandpa to children of those who are out there working three meniel jobs trying to make ends meet.
glades2: JohnMcCain constantly sounds like a bitter sore loser. Thanks heavens he wasn't elected 4 years ago. We'd have started at least another war by now. He uses words such as "shameful" to depict our president. Just do the job you were elected to do, Senator, and stop pretending to do that which you were NOT.
Obama had less time as US Senator than Palin had as governor.... plus years of service don't always equate to readiness for the office of President – sometimes they serve too long and statrt to rot from the top down – MczCain was a horrible choice anyway.... not to mention who cares what Cheney says... only CNN and only when it is a chance to bash Palin or any other repulikans
What is Romney ? He is not ready ....the only thing Romney got going for him is his skin color. And that my friends will destroy our country. He is a CEO not a President and really don't want to be president for the people, he wants to be president for him self. An desire he has and to prove that he is not his father, he will win no matter want it takes. His desire will destroy the world.
He's correct but Biden is worse, and talk about inexperience: we ended up with a community organizer who is communizing us. The Republicans don't offer much but far better options than what we are dealing with now.
Dick Cheney has discovered that since he has a poor track record with making predictions, he'd be better off taking the approach of waiting a few years to see what happens before weighing in.
At she she didn't kill any of our youth in Wars for Big Oil....
I don't care. I'm not voting for anyone.
Gee, Dick... thanks for telling us something that the majority of us figured out eight years ago.
Wow rich wood 7 – are you the poster child for the present regime?
Sorry Mr. Cheney – you are wrong on this one – the real mistake was picking McCain as the Presidential. I couldn't bring myself to vote for a RHINO
While I actually agree with Cheney (on that ONE point), I'd also add that Bush and Cheney were the OTHER big mistakes of the Republicans; mistakes the country will still be paying for a long time to come. Mistakes that include an ill-conceived (and arguably illegal) invasion of Iraq, sanctioned torture, illegal wiretapping of private US citizens, intentional outing of an active CIA agent, loss of international standing with our allies, and the financial meltdown right before he left office.
McCain's mistake was choosing an untried airhead as a running mate; while Bush and Cheney drove the country off of a cliff....
A bigger mistake was Dick Chaney. He was on Good Morning America today and said that Barack Obama was the worst President ever. I think he got that wrong. It seems to me that Mr Bush took the country down to the ground in the first place and I don't remember any President in my lifetime doing that. This guy is just trying to cover up his sad tenure as Vice President with an administration that should be ashamed of themselves!
..........and she was picked over Romney. Wonder what Cheney really feels about the nominee?
Any Republican who has the nomination locked up and them picks a VP to the far right is an idiot. They already have the Republican votes locked up. What they need is to dive the middle and the left a reason to consider them.
Just as WB/Cheney were wrong for the country.
Ha Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha Republicans can't even get along with themselves. Palin was no more than a polictial ploy and failed horribly, she was a horrible Gov, and would have been a worse VP. Thank you tricky Dick for standing up and telling it like it is.
Really Sherlock Cheney. Also picking Romney is a mistake.