Sarah Palin Goes To Bat For Chick-Fil-A, Says Dan Cathy Is Being 'Crucified' By Protests That Have 'Chilling Effect' On First Amendment

After standing on the sidelines for a curiously long time given her reputation as a provocateur, Sarah Palin finally came to Chick-fil-A's defense this week when she posted a picture to her Facebook page that showed her with her husband Todd at the restaurant.

"Stopped by Chick-fil-A in the Woodlands [Texas] to support a great business," the caption and a corresponding tweet read. In the picture, Palin is shown smiling broadly through dark sunglasses as she gives a thumbs-up to the camera. Todd Palin stands next to her, beaming amidst a pile of doggie bags he is holding from the popular fast food chain.

The former governor of Alaska joined fellow Republican ex-politicians Mike Huckabee and Rick Santorum on the latest battleground of America's culture wars since Chick-fil-A's president, Dan Cathy, proclaimed himself "guilty as charged" of anti-gay sentiments. Cathy's statement sparked a "PR disaster" for the fast-food chain that has rankled everyone from children's entertainers to big-city mayors.

Shortly after showing her support through Facebook and Twitter, the 48-year-old Palin appeared on Fox News to discuss the controversy.

"Well, that calling for the boycott is a real—has a chilling effect on our First Amendment rights," she told Fox's Greta Van Susteren. "And the owner of the Chick-fil-A business had merely voiced his personal opinion about supporting traditional definition of marriage, one boy, one girl, falling in love, getting married. And having voiced support for kind of that cornerstone of all civilization and all religions since the beginning of time, he then basically [is] getting crucified."

Palin went on to accuse President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden of political opportunism, charging that they shared her political views until they made a shift to appeal to gay voters.

"I'm speaking up for him [Cathy] and his First Amendment rights and anybody else who would wish to express their not anti-gay people sentiment, but their support of traditional marriage, which President Obama and Joe Biden, they both supported the exact same thing until just a few months ago, when Obama had to flip-flop to shore up the homosexual voter base," she said.

The interview with Palin aired on Tuesday, the day before Mike Huckabee's planned "National Chick-fil-A Appreciation Day." Opponents of the company plan a rival event for Friday, "Kiss Mor Chiks," during which protestors are encouraged to show up at Chick-fil-As across the country and kiss people of the same sex.