Sarah Palin, John McCain’s former running mate during the 2008 election, the woman who never spoke ill of him even after campaign staffers began throwing her under a bus, has not been invited to attend his funeral.
According to People, multiple sources have confirmed that Sarah Palin did not receive an invitation to attend memorial services honoring the Arizona senator.
“Two names you won’t see on the guest list: Trump and Palin,” says a Capitol Hill source with knowledge of the funeral plans. Carla Eudy, a fundraiser who has been friends with the McCain family for decades, also said, “invitations were not extended” to Palin. Several longtime McCain staffers were also removed from the list.
Eudy did not say exactly where the order came from to remove the names, but speculation in Washington, D.C. is that they came from “the family.”
“My guess is, it came from Cindy,” says a source close to the McCain family. “She is very protective of John’s memory and legacy. She’s also a grieving widow. I think she wants to get through this as best she can.”
“Donald Trump and Sarah Palin were not served official notice outright,” says the source. “I want to make that clear. It wasn’t a no-trespass order. They won’t be turned away by guards if they show up at the funeral.”
Stay-away messages were sent through intermediaries.
While some people tied to the McCain camp understand why Trump would be disinvited, they are puzzled over Palin’s. One source even said, “They had a good friendship.” McCain did say in the book “The Restless Wave: Good Times, Just Causes, Great Fights, and other Appreciations,” that he regretted choosing her as his running mate, but Palin always maintained they remained on good terms.
On Saturday, the former Alaska governor even delivered a moving tribute to her former running mate. She said: “Today we lost an American original. Sen. John McCain was a maverick and a fighter, never afraid to stand for his beliefs. John never took the easy path in life — and through sacrifice and suffering he inspired others to serve something greater than self.”
She added, “John McCain was my friend. I will remember the good times.”