Perry vows to defend "traditional" marriage

Texas Gov. Rick Perry has signed a pledge written by an Iowa-based Christian activist group that calls for limiting marriage to a union between a man and a woman, a Perry spokesman confirmed.

Perry's signature on the document comes just two days after he appeared at a forum hosted by the group, the Family Leader. His decision to sign was first reported by the Des Moines Register on Monday. The group's leader, Bob Vander Plaats, has said that presidential candidates seeking the group's endorsement must sign the pledge.

Perry joins Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., and former Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania among Republican candidates for president in taking the pledge. Called "The Marriage Vow," it came under fire this summer for a passage that suggested African-American children were better off under slavery because they were more likely to be raised in a two-parent household than they are today. That section was later retracted by the group.