His counter proposal to in-state tuition was a total tuition waver for students who were the top 25% of MA grads. The legislature rejected that because it believed wealthier family's kids would benefit.
Had it passed, illegal aliens in that 25% could've had free ride at MA state colleges.
Romney didn't have any moral indignation about tuition breaks for illegal immigrant students, he just didn't want a specific benefit for them to be part of his record when he ran for POTUS.
That sounds exactly like the thinking of the guy who slipped up now and revealed his thinking with, I'm running for office, for Pete's sake, I can't have illegals," doesn't it?
No one should be fooled by Romney. He'll say anything.