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'Only Child' Cindy McCain Has Half-Sister

Miffed first daughter of heiress' dad wants to set record straight

By Matt Cantor,  Newser Staff

Posted Aug 19, 2008 10:04 AM CDT

(Newser) – Cindy McCain has publicly referred to herself as an only child—and her half-sister isn’t happy about it, NPR reports.  “I'm angry. It makes me feel like a nonperson, ” said Kathleen Hensley Portalski, whose dad, Arizona multi-millionaire Jim Hensley, is also Cindy's father. Kathleen is 11 years older than her campaigning half-sister.

Jim Hensley had Kathleen in 1943, but divorced her mother and remarried after he met another woman while recuperating from World War II injuries. He occasionally saw Kathleen and helped her financially. “We've never been recognized, and then Cindy has to put such a fine point on it by saying something that's not true,” said Portalski’s son.

Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., center, and his wife Cindy greet patrons of Kerby's Koney Island diner Thursday, Aug. 14, 2008, in Bloomfield, Mich.
Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., center, and his wife Cindy greet patrons of Kerby's Koney Island diner Thursday, Aug. 14, 2008, in Bloomfield, Mich.   (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)
Cindy McCain has a half-sister who is tired of hearing Cindy call herself an only child.
Cindy McCain has a half-sister who is tired of hearing Cindy call herself an only child.   (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)
John McCain and and his wife Cindy wave as they board their plane Sunday, Aug. 17, 2008, in Long Beach, Calif.
John McCain and and his wife Cindy wave as they board their plane Sunday, Aug. 17, 2008, in Long Beach, Calif.   (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)
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