But Romney still wasn't ready Thursday to commit to giving what pundits have called the "JFK speech," to outline his beliefs and address questions raised about Mormonism. John F. Kennedy, who became the country's first Catholic president in 1960, gave a speech shortly before the election to dispel any notion his administration would be controlled by the pope.

"I'd like to, but we'll see," Romney told the Deseret Morning News when asked about giving a similar speech. "I'd like to talk about all sorts of interesting topics, but sometimes that's a good idea and sometimes it's not." He said he would not be a spokesman for the LDS Church but he could speak about the shared values among many faiths.

The suggestion by some evangelical Christians that Mormons are not Christian is not an issue Romney said he was willing to debate. "The term Christian means different things to different people," Romney said. "To some it excludes Catholics and Mormons."

Romney's advisers haven't agreed yet on how to handle the questions raised about his faith. One option is a series of unscripted "moments," like the Mickelson interview, rather than a full-blown speech. Another is to wait to do anything significant until after the primaries, to counter then whatever issues about Mormonism may be raised by the Democrats if Romney is the GOP nominee.

There appears to be no hurry. As one Romney aide explained, "when people attack his religion he becomes an underdog, and people like underdogs." A recent Washington Post-ABC News poll showed Romney leading among Iowa evangelical Protestants.

"For him to give a speech on religion, his religion has to become a bigger issue for us than it is right now," Eric Fehrnstrom, Romney's traveling press secretary, said. "He's keeping his options open."

At his campaign stops Thursday, Romney reminded Iowans to participate in Saturday's straw poll. The daylong event, held in Ames, is a fund-raiser for the Iowa Republican Party but is also seen by political observers as the first test of the 2008 race.

Although Romney's main rivals for the GOP nomination, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and Arizona Sen. John McCain, both announced earlier this summer they're skipping the straw poll, Romney said they're still competition.

Giuliani and McCain are on the straw poll ballot, as is actor and former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson, who has yet to declare he's running for president. Giuliani made several campaign appearances in Iowa this week, and Thompson has announced he'll come next week.

"They're not going to be appearing personally at the event, but they haven't exactly pulled out," Romney said of Giuliani and McCain. "They're still here, just not in body. They certainly are competition."