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I'm gonna vote for .270. There's just so much more you can do with that round than with .223 or .243. The .223 is properly a varminting round, and marginal for light deer (Not knocking the round's power, only that you need truly -precise- shot placement with it). The .243 is much better for deer-sized game, but again, precision shots become more critical as you move up in game size. The .270 has both enough power and a large enough bullet to handle most North American game (and in the hands of an experienced hunter, can handle ALL North American game).

You might also want to check the local pawn shops and gun shop "used racks." I snagged a nice Winchester 70 in .270 that way. (Dang thing's a lead laser with 140-grainers running around 2900 fps. Hits to Point of Aim further out than I'm comfortable shooting.) Barring that, the Stevens 200 is a decent "budget rifle." My only gripe about it is the lack of open sights (I'm a tad paranoid about dropping the rifle on the scope and losing all sighting capability).