Method of ReasoningDiff: Easy
Logic Breakdown
Passage Summary: A politician accuses an agency head of hiring fewer investigators than allowed to cover up a scandal, but the agency head points out they couldn't hire more because the pay was too low.
Conclusion: The failure to hire the full quota of investigators was not a deliberate attempt to hide scandals but a result of external constraints.
Reasoning: The regulator points out that the legislature itself set the salary caps so low that qualified candidates could not be recruited.
Analysis: The regulator responds by offering an alternative explanation for the hiring shortfall that shifts the blame back onto the legislator. Instead of accepting the legislator's claim of malicious intent, the regulator cites a practical impossibility caused by the legislator's own budget rules. This is a classic defensive move: recontextualizing the facts to show the outcome was unavoidable rather than intentional. It’s like being told you’re late because you’re lazy, and responding that the bridge was actually out.
Conclusion: The failure to hire the full quota of investigators was not a deliberate attempt to hide scandals but a result of external constraints.
Reasoning: The regulator points out that the legislature itself set the salary caps so low that qualified candidates could not be recruited.
Analysis: The regulator responds by offering an alternative explanation for the hiring shortfall that shifts the blame back onto the legislator. Instead of accepting the legislator's claim of malicious intent, the regulator cites a practical impossibility caused by the legislator's own budget rules. This is a classic defensive move: recontextualizing the facts to show the outcome was unavoidable rather than intentional. It’s like being told you’re late because you’re lazy, and responding that the bridge was actually out.
Passage Stimulus
Passage Redacted
Unlock Full Passage6.The regulator responds to the legislator's criticism by
Correct Answer
B
The regulator provides new information—frozen, inadequate starting salaries—that directly challenges the legislator’s inference that the shortfall was intentional, offering a plausible, non-nefarious explanation.
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