LSAT 5 | Section 1 | Logical Reasoning: Q4

LR Question 4 Explanation

QUESTION TEXT: Mayor of Plainsville: In order to help the economy…

QUESTION TYPE: Principle – Strengthen

CONCLUSION: The mayor has interests other than the economy in mind (he doesn’t care about the economy)

REASONING: The mayor is building a highway rather than a business park. The citizens’ group claims that a business park would bring in twice the business as the highway.

ANALYSIS: This is only a strengthen type of question. The principle only has to help the argument, not prove it correct.

One problem with the citizens’ argument is that they admit both projects do help the economy. Politicians often are unable to choose the best plan because it would be politically impossible. They may still genuinely want to help the economy when they choose an inferior plan.

The right answer lets us say that this isn’t good enough.

___________

1. CORRECT. This lets us conclude that you can’t claim to care about the economy unless you choose the best project. Now it doesn’t matter that the highway is beneficial unless it helps the most.
2. That doesn’t help us say that the mayor doesn’t care.
3. The mayor may have already consulted with the citizens but decided to ignore them. This doesn’t help.
4. The mayor has a specific goal: build a highway.
5. This plan is being pursued by public officials, such as the mayor.

Recap: The question begins with “Mayor of Plainsville: In order to help the economy”. It is a Principle Justify question. Learn more about LSAT Principle Justify questions in our guide to LSAT Logical Reasoning question types.