With Romney committed, Florida debate will proceed as scheduled on Monday

All four Republican presidential candidates will appear at the next debate in Florida, NBC News said on Saturday. 

Mitt Romney had not confirmed he planned to attend the debate, fueling speculation that he would not attend and the debate would be canceled. 

{mosads}But Saturday morning, Romney said he planned to participate in the Florida debate. 

“I’ll be doing the debate on Monday,” Romney said. “Yeah, I’m in.”

NBC released a statement later Saturday saying all four candidates had committed to attending the debate, which is co-sponsored by NBC News, National Journal, and the Tampa Bay Times. The debate is also will be hosted in association with the Florida Council of 100. 

“All four qualifying Republican presidential candidates have confirmed their attendance for Monday’s NBC News, National Journal, Tampa Bay Times debate,” NBC News senior vice president of specials Mark Lukasiewicz said in a statement. 

The debate is scheduled for Jan. 23 at 9 p.m. at the University of South Florida.