LSAT Explanation PT 42, S2, Q12: Politician: Those economists who claim that

LSAT Question Stem

The reasoning in the politician's argument is most vulnerable to criticism on the grounds that the argument 

Logical Reasoning Question Type

This is a Flaw question. 

Correct Answer

The correct answer to this question is D. 

LSAT Question Complete Explanation

First, let's analyze the politician's argument in the passage. The politician is arguing against the claim that consumer price increases have averaged less than 3 percent over the last year. As evidence, the politician cites several examples of price increases, such as gasoline, auto insurance, newspapers, propane, and bread. The structure of the argument is as follows:

Premise: Gasoline, auto insurance, newspapers, propane, and bread have all experienced price increases greater than 3 percent.

Conclusion: The claim that consumer price increases have averaged less than 3 percent over the last year is mistaken.

The question asks us to identify the flaw in the politician's reasoning. This is a Flaw question type.

Before we discuss the answer choices, let's consider an "Evaluate" question for this argument: "Are the price increases cited by the politician representative of the overall average of consumer price increases?"

Now, let's go through each answer choice:

a) The argument does not attack the character of the economists but rather disputes their claim. This answer choice is incorrect.

b) The argument does not need to show that the economists are not experts in consumer prices to dispute their claim. This answer choice is also incorrect.

c) The politician provides evidence (price increases of specific items) to argue against the claim, rather than just stating it has not been shown to be true. This answer choice is incorrect.

d) This answer choice correctly identifies the flaw in the politician's reasoning. The politician uses a small, potentially unrepresentative sample of price increases to dispute the average consumer price increase claim. This is the correct answer choice.

e) The politician's argument is based on percentages and price increases, not an emotional appeal. This answer choice is incorrect.

In conclusion, the correct answer to this LSAT problem is choice (d), which identifies the flaw in the politician's reasoning as using evidence drawn from a small sample that may well be unrepresentative.