PrepTest 150, Section 2, Question 3
Durham: The mayor will agree to a tax(46 more words not shown)
The dialogue provides the most(15 more words not shown)
- AThe mayor will(5 more words not shown)
- BThe only way(21 more words not shown)
- CThe mayor’s road(6 more words not shown)
- DThe mayor will(7 more words not shown)
- EIt is more(17 more words not shown)
Reading the argument
They see the same tradeoff and predict different choices.
Durham thinks the mayor cares most about the road repairs, so she will accept the tax increase needed to get them approved. Espinoza thinks avoiding a tax increase matters more, so the roads won't get approved. They aren't simply debating whether she likes the roads. They disagree about what she is willing to sacrifice to get them.
We could ask whether a priority guarantees action at all. Maybe the mayor wants the repairs most but still fails to act. That's a possible objection to a prediction. It isn't, however, what the two speakers are arguing about: they place different priorities on the two sides of this tradeoff.
What we’re looking for
Now read the question carefully. It asks what they agree about. So set aside their opposing forecasts and look for the shared obstacle: getting the road proposal through requires the mayor to agree to higher taxes.
Working the answers
- A
Durham predicts agreement to a tax increase. Espinoza says the mayor's greater concern about keeping taxes down will prevent the road proposal from passing. That response points toward refusing the increase, not sharing Durham's prediction. A is on the disagreement side.
- BCorrect
Durham explicitly says the council will agree to the roads only if the mayor agrees to a tax increase. Espinoza's explanation relies on that same tradeoff: the proposal won't pass because avoiding higher taxes matters more to her.
Espinoza doesn't repeat the words 'city council,' but consider what the explanation would mean without this condition. If she could get the road plan approved without accepting a tax increase, her preference for low taxes wouldn't explain why the plan won't pass. B identifies the shared requirement underneath their different predictions.
- C
Durham explicitly calls the road proposal her top priority. Espinoza ranks keeping taxes from rising above passing the proposal. Those are opposing descriptions of what matters most to her, not an agreement.
- D
Espinoza predicts that the proposal won't pass. Durham expects the mayor to make the tax concession needed to get the council's agreement. Their reasoning points to different outcomes, so D doesn't capture their common ground.
- E
This is Espinoza's ranking of the mayor's priorities. Durham gives the opposite ranking by calling the roads her top priority. They can agree that there is a tradeoff while disagreeing over which side the mayor values more.
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