Mitt Romney Offers Rick Perry $10,000 Bet

Report from ABC News:

With the Iowa caucuses looming, six Republican presidential candidates clashed tonight over their conservative credentials and personal histories in a Des Moines debate that saw resurgent frontrunner Newt Gingrich battling attacks by his rivals from all sides.

But it was Mitt Romney who stole the spotlight for a $10,000 bet with Texas Gov. Rick Perry over what he wrote about the individual health insurance mandate — then removed — in subsequent editions of his book, "No Apologies."

"I read your first book and it said in there that your mandate in Massachusetts should be the model for the country. And I know it came out of the reprint of the book," Perry said. "But, you know, I'm just sayin', you were for individual mandates, my friend."

Romney disputed the claim, challenging Perry to a $10,000 bet over who was right.

"I have not said, in that book, first edition or the latest edition, anything about our plan being a national model imposed on the nation," Romney said.

"I'm not in the betting business, but I'll show you the book," Perry replied.

In the first version of Romney's book, a line referring to a universal health care mandate reads: "We can accomplish the same thing for everyone in the country, and it can be done without letting government take over health care."

In the later paperback version, the line was changed to: "And it was done without the government taking over health care."