Updated at 12:42 p.m. ET

A day after winning the Iowa straw poll, GOP presidential hopeful Michele Bachmann was pressed on issues such as the national debt and gay rights as she made the rounds of Sunday morning talk shows.

The Minnesota congresswoman, sounding confident that she could defeat President Obama in November 2012, said repeatedly that her conviction against an increase in the nation's debt ceiling resonates with voters.

"I am unwilling to accept the new normal of ramped-up spending. We have to grow the economy and reduce government spending. That's how we will get to balance," Bachmann said on CNN's State of the Union.

The race for the GOP presidential nomination is now in a new phase, with Bachmann's victory in the straw poll, the entrance into the race of Texas Gov. Rick Perry and the exit of former Minnesota governor Tim Pawlenty.

Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney is the current front-runner, according to national polls by Gallup and other independent organizations. Even before he had declared his candidacy, Perry had shot up to second in national polls behind Romney.

Bachmann, little known until recently outside of her House district in the Minneapolis suburbs, has had a quick rise in the race since she declared her candidacy in June and is running strong in Iowa surveys. Asked on Fox News if she can defeat Obama, Bachmann was unequivocal in saying "yes."

"I know I can, because what I've seen from people all across the country is, they really do want to take the country back," she said. "They want a new direction, and they want someone they can believe in. I think they see in me a champion for their values and their voice, and they want a real person in the White House, someone they can trust."

Asked on NBC's Meet the Press about past statements about her Christian faith, Bachmann declined to say directly what role religion would play in the decisions she would make if she were elected.

"As president of the United States, I would pray. I would pray and ask the Lord for guidance," she said. "That's what presidents have done throughout history. I'm extremely grateful to have a faith in God. ...He's been very good to our country. It's important for us to seek his guidance and to pray and to listen to his voice."

On the same program, Bachmann also deflected questions on whether she would appoint an atheist or someone who is openly gay to the Cabinet. She said her criteria would focus on three points: how that person interprets the Constitution, whether he or she is competent and whether they share her views.

NBC's David Gregory also asked Bachmann about a 2004 speech in which she discussed gays and lesbians, saying they have a "very sad life" and likened homosexuality to "personal bondage, personal despair and personal enslavement."

Bachmann said she is not judging gays and lesbians, and repeated her stance that she believes marriage should be limited to one man and one woman.

The congresswoman, first elected in 2006, finished first in yesterday's Iowa straw poll, a fundraiser for the state GOP and a test of organizational strength. The straw poll, however, is not always an accurate predictor of who will win the Iowa presidential caucus or the GOP nomination.

Bachmann earned nearly 29% of the straw poll vote, followed by Texas Rep. Ron Paul with 28% and Tim Pawlenty with 14%. Pawlenty said this morning he will quit the campaign.

Perry, the longest-serving governor in Texas, and Bachmann will both appear today at an event in Waterloo, where she was born and where she launched her presidential bid in June. The Iowa presidential caucuses, the nation's first, are scheduled for early February.