LSAT 152 | Section 2 | Logical Reasoning: Q24

LR Question 24 Explanation

QUESTION TEXT: Political scientist: When a bill comes before a legislative body…

QUESTION TYPE: Must be False

FACTS:

1. Most of the time, a bill can get a majority of votes in a legislature.
2. When #1 isn’t true, most of the time a compromise is possible such that the bill can pass.
3. But, no such compromise is possible when the bill has to do with something of fundamental importance to legislators.

ANALYSIS: The only prephrase I got here was that 75+% of bills pass in some form. We can get this from statement one combined with statement 2. (i.e. statement 1 is 51%, and then statement 2 is half of the 49% left, or 24.5%. 51% + 24.5% = 75.5%)

I couldn’t prephrase anything else. Sometimes there’s nothing to do but read the answers and compare them to the statements.

___________

1. The stimulus actually suggested this is true. Compromise in such situations is impossible, so bills can’t pass into law due to one. You might be thrown off by the word “usually” here, but that’s a minimum and not a maximum. Usually can mean 100% of the time. So, this answer goes in the direction of statement #3 above.
2. The statements also suggest this is true. Per the deduction above, 75+% of bills pass into law, and the biggest known stumbling block is when there is an issue of fundamental importance. So, if that isn’t present, we do know that in the ordinary course of things 75+% of bills pass into law.
3. CORRECT. This contradicts statement #3 above. That said such compromise is impossible.
    
   When I read this answer, I hesitated, because it seemed too straightforward a contradiction. But, this really is the answer. The last two questions are usually easier on LR sections and have fewer traps.
4. This is a trap answer. We know most bills pass without need for compromise (statement #1). In such cases, it’s possible that the majority had strong convictions.
    
   e.g. Suppose you are a representative, and you believe murder is wrong. This is a fundamental conviction, and nothing will sway you. 99% of legislators agree with you, and would not compromise on this point. So, when the “murder is wrong” bill comes up to a vote, 99% of the legislature votes for it, with fundamental conviction, and no compromise.
    
   See? Easy to pass such a bill. Fundamental importance is only a barrier when compromise is required. If a majority agrees on what is important, there’s no issue.
    
   All we can say for sure is that most bills don’t require compromise on something of fundamental importance.
5. This is consistent with the argument. The author never said what percentage of bills are considered important. All we can say for sure is that most bills don’t require compromise on something of fundamental importance.

Recap: The question begins with “Political scientist: When a bill comes before a legislative body”. It is a Must be False question. Learn more about LSAT MBF questions in our guide to LSAT Logical Reasoning question types.