Factbox: Republican 2012 hopefuls mostly decry debt deal

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Republicans looking to unseat President Barack Obama in the 2012 election are taking stands on the proposed 11th-hour deal to raise the U.S. borrowing limit -- mostly against Republican leaders in Congress.

The $2.1 trillion deficit-cutting plan, brokered by Vice President Joe Biden and Republican and Democratic congressional leaders, is headed for a close vote in the House of Representatives on Monday.

Below is a summary of where the top presidential hopefuls come down on the deal.

* Front-runner Mitt Romney, a co-founder of private equity firm Bain Capital and former Massachusetts governor, has been tilting to the right to attract primary voters. He put out a short statement blasting Obama.

"While I appreciate the extraordinarily difficult situation President Obama's lack of leadership has placed Republican Members of Congress in, I personally cannot support this deal," he said.

* Representative Michele Bachmann, a favorite of the far right Tea Party movement, also blasted the deal, saying in a statement that it "spends too much and doesn't cut enough."

* Texas governor Rick Perry, who has hinted strongly that he will jump into the race, was not immediately available for comment.

* Former Minnesota governor Tim Pawlenty, who has been leaning to the right to attract primary voters, did not support the deal either, according to his spokesman, Alex Conant, who called it a route into further debt.

* Obama's former ambassador to China, Jon Huntsman, who has called for more civility in the campaign, is the odd man out. He said he would back the deal.

"While some of my opponents ducked the debate entirely, others would have allowed the nation to slide into default and President Obama refused to offer any plan, I have been proud to stand with congressional Republicans working for these needed and historic cuts," Huntsman said in a statement.

* Representative Ron Paul, also a favorite of Tea Party groups, has said he would not vote for any bill that raises the debt ceiling.

(Reporting by Kim Dixon)