Romney to sign debt limit pledge

By Matt Viser, Globe Staff

WASHINGTON – Mitt Romney said this afternoon that he would sign a pledge that would encourage Congress to block an increase of the federal debt limit unless the legislation includes spending cuts and budget caps.

Joining five other Republican presidential candidates, Romney said he would support the ”Cut, Cap and Balance Pledge.” The pledge, which has been pushed by a wide range of conservative groups, urges Congress to oppose debt limit increases unless it includes: “substanital cuts” in spending; spending caps that would put limits on the federal budget; and passage of a Balanced Budget Amendment to the Constitution.

The last provision may be the most politically unlikely, in part because the pledge calls for it to include a super-majority in order to raise taxes.

Romney said he supported the pledge during a round of meetings on Capitol Hill. He planned to meet with seven sentors, including his fellow Massachusetts Republican, Scott Brown. He was also meeting with senators Bob Corker, of Tennessee; Thad Cochran, of Mississippi; Orrin Hatch, of Utah; Mike Lee, of Utah; James Risch, of Idaho; and Jeff Sessions, of Alabama.

“I expressed my view that we are currently dealing with the critical fiscal issues of this generation and that we need strong leadership on these issues,” Lee said in a statement following their meeting. “I was happy to hear that Governor Romney supports the Cut, Cap and Balance Pledge including a Balanced Budget Amendment—one of my top priorities—and that his focus remains on growing the economy to create good jobs for our country.”

The pledge has also been signed by several of Romney’s presidential rivals: businessman Herman Cain; former House Speaker Newt Gingrich; former Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty; Representative Ron Paul, of Texas; and former Senator Rick Santorum, of Pennsylvania.

Jon Huntsman, Jr., the former Utah governor, has said he would not sign the pledge.

Romney’s decision to sign the debt limit pledge comes just over a week after he came under criticism for not signing a pledge sponsored by the Susan B. Anthony List. That pledge would, among other things, ban federal funds to any institution that pays for abortions or affiliates with an abortion provider.

Romney insists that, while he supports strict limits on abortion, he couldn’t sign the pledge because it would cripple hospitals dependent on federal payments such as Medicare and tie his hands as president.