Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin told ministry students at her former church that the United States sent troops to fight in the Iraq war on a "task that is from God."
The problem is that her full statement simply asked people to pray for soldiers to do the right thing and for US leaders to do God's will in general when sending out soldiers:
"Pray for our military. He is going to be deployed in September to Iraq. 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 them [U.S. soldiers] out on a task that is from God, that is what we have to make sure that we are praying for, that there is a plan and that that plan is God's plan."
Her grammar in the extemporaneous speech is clearer to understand in the actual video (at 3:23):
The AP (et al) distorted the statement by changing it to an independent declaration ("our leaders are sending them out on a task that is from God") when really it's clear that she is saying "Pray that our leaders are sending them out on a task that is from God" and to pray that the leaders' plan is aligned with God's wishes.
There is nothing radical about this sentiment at all--it is a fundamental element of mainstream Christian and Jewish theology. In secular terms, the concept is also a truism--it's important to do the right things, not just to do things right.
-Palin did not cut funding for special needs education in Alaska by 62 percent. She didn’t cut it at all. In fact, she tripled per-pupil funding over just three years.
-She did not demand that books be banned from the Wasilla library. Some of the books on a widely circulated list were not even in print at the time. The librarian has said Palin asked a "What if?" question, but the librarian continued in her job through most of Palin's first term.
-She was never a member of the Alaskan Independence Party, a group that wants Alaskans to vote on whether they wish to secede from the United States. She’s been registered as a Republican since May 1982.
-Palin never endorsed or supported Pat Buchanan for president. She once wore a Buchanan button as a "courtesy" when he visited Wasilla, but shortly afterward she was appointed to co-chair of the campaign of Steve Forbes in the state.
-Palin has not pushed for teaching creationism in Alaska's schools. She has said that students should be allowed to "debate both sides" of the evolution question, but she also said creationism "doesn't have to be part of the curriculum."
