Former VP pick Sarah Palin offers advice to Democratic VP nominee Kamala Harris: 'Trust no one new'

• On Tuesday, Sarah Palin, the 2008 Republican vice presidential candidate, took to Instagram to congratulate Kamala Harris and share six pieces of advice.
• Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden picked the California senator as his vice presidential running mate.
• "Out of the chute trust no one new" and "Don't forget the women who came before you," Palin told Harris.
• Palin also encouraged Harris to "have fun," adding, "This IS the greatest country in the world and hopefully you'll be blessed beyond belief, like I was, with meeting new people from all walks of life."

Sarah Palin offered congratulations and advice to Kamala Harris in the hours after presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden tapped the California senator as his vice presidential running mate.

Former Sen. John McCain added Palin, who served as Alaska's governor, to his ticket as the 2008 Republican vice presidential candidate. A gun-toting conservative firebrand and self-proclaimed "Mama Grizzly," Palin accused former President Barack Obama of "palling around" with terrorists and said at the Republican National Convention, "I love those hockey moms. You know, they say the difference between a hockey mom and a pit bull? Lipstick."

Palin may be best remembered for her answer to an ABC interviewer's question about what she thought about Russia. "They're our next-door neighbors, and you can actually see Russia from land here in Alaska, from an island in Alaska," she said. The comment was widely lambasted.

She is seen as having derailed McCain's presidential campaign with Stanford University researchers estimating that she cost him around 2 million votes.

Still, Palin wrote: "Climb upon Geraldine Ferraro's and my shoulders, and from the most amazing view in your life consider lessons we learned." Walter Mondale picked Ferraro as his running mate during a 1984 presidential bid. The three-term congresswoman from New York made history as the first woman to run for vice president on a major party ticket.

Palin shared six nuggets of wisdom with Harris on Instagram.

"Out of the chute trust no one new," she began, adding, "Fight mightily to keep your own team with you — they know you, know your voice, and most importantly are trustworthy."

Harris was born in Oakland to parents of Jamaican and Indian descent. She was the first woman and Black person to ever serve as San Francisco District Attorney and then California Attorney General.

"Don't get muzzled," Palin told her, suggesting that Harris build connections with voters and the news media in her "own unique way."

"Some yahoos running campaigns will suffocate you with their own self-centered agenda so remember YOU were chosen for who YOU are. So stay connected with America as you smile and ignore deceptive 'handlers' trying to change you," Palin said.

Harris, 55, initially ran against Biden to become the Democratic presidential nominee but dropped out in December amid waning enthusiasm and insufficient campaign funds.

Palin educated Harris on campaign glossary terms, including "OTR" or "an orchestrated campaign stop that's meant to look un-orchestrated where you 'normalize' in front of voters," she wrote.

According to Palin, her time at the "ropeline" was the "MOST fun" part of the campaign trail.

"Every single handshake and holler and hug and smile melted my heart, energized my soul, and gave me the utmost hope in the greatest country on earth!" Palin added. "The ropeline is often the only way to literally touch those whom you wish to serve, so be sincere in looking in their eyes, understanding why they're there, never forgetting they represent the innumerable Americans putting their trust in you to serve for the right reasons. It's who and what they represent that is all that matters!"

Palin also advised Harris not to "forget the women who came before you," and also encouraged her to "have fun."

"This IS the greatest country in the world and hopefully you'll be blessed beyond belief, like I was, with meeting new people from all walks of life and see just how great it is!" Palin added.

She also promised that she'd have more to share with Harris in the future, including an experience that occurred before a debate with then-vice presidential nominee Biden, which Palin described as "one of the funniest things in my life."

• Read more:
• Tucker Carlson was furious after a guest corrected his pronunciation of Kamala Harris' name
• Records show that Trump donated to Kamala Harris' campaigns twice while he was a private citizen
• Trump called Kamala Harris 'the kind of opponent everyone dreams of' — right after a report that she is actually the candidate his campaign least wants to face
• Trump tells Americans they'll have to 'learn to speak Chinese' if he loses to Biden in 2020