Most of Romney’s stances are superior to those of Rick Santorum, Newt Gingrich and Ron Paul. When you compare Romney’s views to the other Republican candidates’, his generally are more moderate than the others — a rarity for many conservatives. The evenhandedness of his observations is what leads us to support him in this primary.

In regard to higher education and MSU, Romney would be the best choice for students. When he was governor of Massachusetts, the state remained first in school’s test scores on the National Assessment of Educational Progress. This demonstrates Romney’s understanding of the value of education. He also is in favor of increasing standards for teachers and reforming or replacing under-performing schools to boost the quality of education in the U.S.

Romney also has familial ties to MSU; his brother, Scott, is a former MSU trustee and received a degree in economics from MSU in 1966. The personal connection he has to the school hopefully would aid the university.

In comparison, education doesn’t seem to be as high of a priority to the other candidates. Rick Santorum recently called President Barack Obama a “snob” for wanting everyone in American to pursue a college degree, Ron Paul wants to move away from offering students federally funded college loans along with removing the Department of Education and Newt Gingrich also wants to shrink the Department of Education.

When it comes to the issue of foreign policy, none of the Republican candidates offer any comfort. Essentially, Romney wants to throw troops at every problem, especially at the possibility of Iran becoming a nuclear nation. Similarly, Santorum has promised to bomb Iran’s nuclear facilities. On the polar opposite side, Paul has the naive plan of isolationism, removing the U.S. from most all foreign issues.

However, when it comes to government spending and revenues, Romney’s tax plan is superior to the other Republican hopefuls. Even though under Romney’s proposed tax plan, low- and middle-income households would pay more and high-income families would pay less, it’s a more clearly outlined plan for the future of America than any other candidate has shown so far. Presidential hopefuls Santorum and Gingrich both proposed to cut taxes without identifying which federal spending cuts would make up for the significant loss of revenue.

Romney stands above the other hopefuls. Campaigning against disappointing candidates — according to the Pew Research Center, 52 percent of Republicans or Republican-leaning voters say the field is only fair or poor — only cements his position as the best choice for the Republican candidate in Michigan’s presidential primary.