PrepTest 145, Section 2, Question 24
Tariffs on particular products tend to protect the(45 more words not shown)
Which one of the following(8 more words not shown)
- ASupporters of tariffs(24 more words not shown)
- BPoliticians always vote(10 more words not shown)
- CPoliticians should support(18 more words not shown)
- DPoliticians should never(11 more words not shown)
- EPeople who would(13 more words not shown)
Reading the argument
Will people vote on this issue? Opposing a tariff in a poll isn't the same as voting against a politician who supports it.
The benefits are concentrated: a steelworker whose job is protected by a steel tariff might care intensely about keeping it. The higher prices are spread across everyone else. Those people might dislike paying more without making tariffs central to their political choices.
One possibility is turnout. The steelworkers and their coworkers might be highly motivated to vote, while many people who oppose the tariff stay home. A majority opinion wouldn't automatically control the election in that situation.
What we’re looking for
The necessary-assumption question asks what the prediction depends on. We need a connection between the polls and actual voting behavior. Counting tariff opponents isn't enough unless their opposition translates into the electoral advantage the author predicts.
Working the answers
- ACorrect
This says tariff supporters aren't significantly more likely than opponents to base their vote on a politician's tariff position. That blocks a problem closely related to the turnout concern: even among people who vote, the two groups might give the issue very different weight.
Suppose the protected workers make tariffs their deciding issue, while many opponents vote mainly on other concerns. A politician could lose committed supporters by opposing tariffs without gaining much support from the larger group that merely dislikes them. The argument relies on that imbalance not defeating its move from majority opposition to better reelection prospects. A addresses the role of this issue in voting, not just whether someone appears at the polls.
- B
The argument predicts which position would improve a politician's chances. It doesn't require politicians always to choose the position that helps them win. A politician could knowingly take an electorally costly position, and the claim about its electoral effect would be a separate matter.
- C
We aren't comparing particular-product tariffs with general tariffs. A recommendation to support only general tariffs introduces a new policy choice and a new claim about popularity. Neither is needed for the argument's prediction about voting against these tariffs.
- D
'Never support measures that favor a small percentage' is much broader than this argument. The author considers one kind of tariff and predicts an electoral consequence. That doesn't require a universal rule against every policy benefiting a small group, regardless of its purpose or other effects.
- E
People can oppose a policy without correctly understanding how it affects them. The polls already give us the fact of majority opposition. The argument needs to connect that opposition to voting; it doesn't need an explanation of why people hold the opinion or proof that they understand the economic effects.
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