Does Sarah Palin believe the Iraq War is "God's War"?

Alright, I'll spoil it: She doesn't.

It's being murmured throughout the blogosphere and even lurks its way into some legitimate news sources: Sarah Palin believes American soldiers are "on a task that is from God." Any quote that brief should throw up red flags for any objective reader. Here's the unadultered quote in its proper context:

Pray for our military men and women who are striving to do what is right. Also, for this country, that our leaders, our national leaders, are sending [U.S. soldiers] out on a task that is from God. That's what we have to make sure that we're praying for, that there is a plan and that that plan is God's plan.

Not exactly fire and brimstone, is it? She's asking the congregants to pray for wisdom and sound moral judgment from political leadership, not declaring a Holy War.

There remains an effort to cast Palin as outside the mainstream on a host of issues such as abortion and gay rights. What her critics don't realize (or don't want to realize) is that whether or not Palin's views align with theirs, most voters respect the integrity and credibility that her personal experiences bring to the abortion debate. When it comes to gay rights, seldom is it reported that Palin vetoed a bill outlawing same-sex benefits for state employees, effectively guaranteeing benefits to gay state employees. Curiously, however, most of the focus is aimed at Palin's opposition to gay marriage. While this is portrayed as "outside the mainstream," when's the last time anyone characterized Obama's opposition as extremist?

In fact, the issues for which Palin is made out to be an unapologetic ideologue are when Barry is at his most slippery. Here are his views on each respective issue in his own words:

Gun rights

I think there is an individual right to bear arms, but it's subject to commonsense regulation

I would respect his position if he were to interpret the second amendment to say that guns are meant solely for the militia, but he isn't. He acknowledges that gun ownership is a right, then concludes that a right is up for negotiation.

Death Penalty

The community is justified in expressing the full measure of its outrage

In fairness to Obama, he's also said he wants to limit the number of executions in order to appear to care about the anti-death penalty crowd (see: abortion).

So the accusation the Palin believes she governs Alaska with a mandate from Heaven is provably false. She has done more for gay unions in Alaska (a red state in which gay rights are more difficult to sell to the electorate) than Obama did in Illinois (Non-existent gay union record in the legislature of a solid blue state). Unlike Obama, her message in uncorruptably clear. In fact, the absence of pandering in her rhetoric signals a genuine departure from politics as usual. That's change you can believe in.