That quote can be found here, with about 3:30 remaining in the ABC News video (If the direct link should fail to work, click on “Exclusive Interview with Gov. Sarah Palin,” from here). The fact that she is willing to acknowledge the Islamic aspect is at least a departure from the lexicon of the current administration. However, her reference to the Tiny Minority of Extremists unfortunately reaffirms that counter-terror policy, whether directed by either party, will continue to be grounded in fundamental misconceptions about the nature of the conflict.
The most obvious misconception, which is a near article of faith in public policy, is that there is nothing in Islam itself — in its texts, tradition, and teachings — to support what jihadists have done and continue to do. The second is that such activity must be violent in order to advance the jihadist agenda, which is, ultimately, to impose Islamic law. Together, those two notions contribute to a third: that only a minuscule number of Muslims worldwide would like to see Islamic law replace secular governments, believe that violence is justified to that end, or believe those on the receiving end of various jihadist atrocities somehow had it coming. The occasional set of polls casts doubt on just how tiny the Tiny Minority of Extremists is, but what truly drives the point home is the daily stream of news items in which violence is committed in the name of Islam, and the unwillingness on the part of Muslim advocacy groups in the West to repudiate the ideology driving that violence (and not just in generalities for Western public consumption).
But the Tiny Minority remains as dogma for both parties; if nothing else, the fact that neither party fully grasps the nature of the threat facing the West should underscore the fact that the issue ultimately transcends partisan politics: Jihadist activities will still be an issue long after this presidential election, and the next one. And, to borrow a much-used (and parodied) slogan, then, where combating the global jihad is concerned, we’re still left for the time being without the promise of “change we can believe in.”