With whitetail deer, there is simply no reason to think about what you call a Category 2. That's a lot of extra cost, a bunch of extra weight, a lot of extra recoil, and a lot of kinetic energy going into the dirt on the far side of the animal.
Given what remains and the idea that you want to buy ammo off the shelf, I would go with the 308 WIN. I wrote an article within the past six months that pretty much came to the same conclusion, but for a whole different set of criteria than what you are naming.
We mostly shoot 30-06 at my camp. We're handloading everything, so what we shoot is tailored considerably. We have one 308 WIN at camp. It's my Opening Day GOTO rifle. Everything is downloaded a wee bit, but we have plenty to knock a deer off its feet out past 250 yards. All this is done with standard cup-n-core bullets too.
Remember this as well: Most whitetails killed by most hunters are taken within 80 yards. That's an average, of course. However, our camp record is 253 yards. My son took a doe at that range a couple of years ago. I've personally taken more deer inside 50 yards than I have beyond 150.
