Logical reasoning PrepTest 148 · Section 1 · Question 19

Correct. Argument or Facts:
Argument

Valid or Flawed:
Flawed

Question Type:
Weaken

Stimulus Summary:
Thompson is the only candidate who opposes higher taxes, so she is the best candidate.

Answer Anticipation:
First, note that we didn't include the last sentence in the summary. What "[m]any would agree" to doesn't establish that a significant number think that it's true. That statement is a throwaway that doesn't carry much (if any) logical force.

With that stripped away, the argument is pretty straightforward—and so is the assumption. The Politician here is assuming that the person who wants to lower taxes is the best candidate to lead the nation, so any answer that calls that assumption into question will weaken this argument.

Note that the argument is very much comparative—Thompson is the only candidate with an anti-tax view; she'd be "the best" person to be elected. Let's be careful of answers that don't provide a reason to question whether Thompson is better than the other candidates.

Answer Explanation:
The Politician's conclusion that Thompson would be the best leader rests solely on her unique opposition to higher taxes. If that doesn't factor into whether someone is a good leader, then the Politician's argument falls apart. This is therefore the correct answer.

Key Takeaway:
In Strengthen/Weaken questions, when a conclusion is relative, prioritize answers that allow for a comparison to be drawn. The conclusion here is that Thompson is a better leader than all other candidates—in order to strengthen/weaken that, we really need to know points of comparison between her and the others.

Incorrect. While it may not be sufficient, it could be necessary, thus making Thompson the best candidate for the job. In fact, being the only candidate with a necessary condition for good leadership would be more important than being one with what could be one of many sufficient conditions for it.

Incorrect. This answer can be very tempting—after all, it calls Thompson's other positions into question, thus suggesting maybe she wouldn't be a good leader. But there are two issues with this answer. First, it doesn't speak to issues that are necessarily more important than taxes. Second, it doesn't establish that the other candidates don't have equally questionable opinions on important issues—thus it doesn't question her relative qualifications, and those are what are relevant to the conclusion.

Incorrect. Two issues. First, what is true of past leaders isn't necessarily true of Thompson, especially since this is just a correlation and doesn't state that their support of taxes is what led them to being adequate instead of "the best." Second, the conclusion in the stimulus is relative—"the best" could still be bad!—and this answer isn't—"adequate" is a measurement against an outside standard. For those reasons, this answer doesn't impact the conclusion.

Incorrect. Two issues. First, what is true of past leaders isn't necessarily true of Thompson, especially since this is just a correlation and doesn't state that their support of taxes is what led them to work hard. Second, There's no indication that hard work makes someone a good or better leader.