Republicans divided on govt borrowing limit

PELLA, Iowa - The presidential candidates aren't the only Republicans divided about letting the US government borrow even more money to pay its bills. So, too, are the voters they're courting.

Fiscal hardliners in early voting states say the issue is a major test for any would-be challenger to President Barack Obama. They're refusing to consider backing someone who leaves open the door to raising the debt ceiling.

As Len Gosselink, an Iowa Republican, put it after listening to former US House Speaker Newt Gingrich last week: "It's unthinkable in my mind to support a candidate who would allow it."