Mitt Romney talks about Obama, Qaddafi and Mormonism in Iowa

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa - At his third and final stop of a one-day swing through the state of Iowa, Mitt Romney did his best to keep the focus on the economy, but ended up addressing both his faith and President Obama's role in bringing down Libyan dictator Muammar el-Qaddafi.

Asked by reporters as he was leaving the Council Bluffs Chamber of Commerce whether the president deserves some credit for the death of the ousted Libyan leader, Romney said: "Yes. Yes, absolutely."

At an earlier town hall in Sioux City, Romney expressed satisfaction at Qaddafi's demise. "I think it's about time. Qaddafi (was a) terrible tyrant that killed his own people, and murdered Americans and others in the tragedy in Lockerbie. The world is a better place with Qaddafi gone."

Some of Romney's rivals for the Republican presidential nomination, including Texas Gov. Rick Perry, Rep. Michele Bachmann and former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman, issued statements hailing the dictator's demise. But Romney was the only candidate to suggest, albeit under questioning, that Obama's policy in the region played a role.

Republicans have been sharply divided - but almost unanimously critical - of Obama's Libya policy, which was supportive of the rebels but let Europe take the lead role. Obama's 2008 presidential rival, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., wanted the president to do more, while one of this year's Republican presidential hopefuls, Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, opposed any intervention in Liby, even though he called Qaddafi a "bad guy."

One woman in the audience at the Council Bluffs meeting raised a topic Romney has tried to downplay in his campaign, asking if the former Massachusetts governor would want to correct misinformation about the Mormon faith if he wins the presidency. A Texas pastor who supports Perry earlier this month called Mormonism "a cult" and said it is "not Christian."

"I don't think so." Romney told his questioner, adding, "I think great majority of American people want to select the person who is the most capable of getting our country going again with strong values, a strong economy and a strong military. " But Romney, who won applause for declaring that "a religious test shouldn't be applied to people who are running for office," added: "I am shaped by the Judeo-Christian values which I have and hope that those will hold me in good stead as they have so far." Mormons regard the Bible one of their sacred texts.

Religion is a tricky subject for Romney in Iowa, where he lost the 2008 caucus to former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, a Baptist minister who was able to win a large majority of Iowa's evangelical voters, a bloc that tends to dominate the state's Republican presidential caucuses. Nationally, there is evidence of bias against Mormons. In a Gallup Poll earlier this year, more than one in five respondents said they would not vote for a Mormon for president.