Question: In 2001 and 2002, political opinion was bitterly divided between the Republicans, who wanted to cut high marginal personal income tax rates and offer retroactive benefits to corporations by canceling the alternative minimum tax, and the Democrats, who wanted to offer a $300 rebate to those who paid no income tax, extend unemployment benefits, and institute prescription drug benefits for the poor.

(A) How would you ‘‘prove'' the Republican case if you were a lobbyist for General Motors?

(B) How would you ‘‘prove'' the Democrats' case if you were a lobbyist for the Urban Institute?

(C) Suppose you had no political biases in either direction. What data would you want to examine before forming any conclusion?

(D) How would your answer change if this question appeared on an exam, and you thought your professor was more liberal than you?