Fallacies in a commercial
‘Romney Killed My Wife’
In political races in the United States logical fallacies are a staple in political ads. The 2012 election was no exception to this convention, especially being true in an advertisement with ex-steel plant worker Joe Soptic, speaking in Obama-affiliated Political Action Committee Priorities. The advertisement included many logical fallacies to argue against the Romney campaign. Those include post hoc reasoning, ad hominem, and slippery slope.
The advertisement consisted of just one man, Joe Soptic, an ex-steel plant worker, of GST Steel, speaking against Mitt Romney. He personally points blame on Romney for the death of his wife. He says that when “Mitt Romney and Bain closed the plant, I lost my health care, and my family lost their health care, and a short time after that my wife became ill.” He then proceeds to say that she passed aways twenty-two days after taking her to the Jackson County Hospital of cancer. The advertisement ends with Soptic saying that Romney “doesn’t realize what he’s done to anyone, and furthermore, I do not think Mitt Romney is concerned.” Priorities USA Action paid for the advertisement as well as responsible for the content.
The logical fallacy of post hoc reasoning is the main base of this advertisement. Post hoc reasoning being that there is an argument being made that one event cause the other when they are unrelated. The argument is that because Romney and Bain Capital closed the plant, Soptic’s wife died. These events are unrelated because Soptic’s illness was not the cause of Romney and Bain Capital closing down the plant. The addition that his wife “passed away in twenty-two days,” to the post hoc fallacy in the advertisement. An additional post hoc fallacy is the fact that Romney had left Bain Capital two years before GST Steel closed. This further disconnects this argument from the Romney campaign.
Another logical fallacy that is present throughout the advertisement is ad hominem. Ad hominem being
In political races in the United States logical fallacies are a staple in political ads. The 2012 election was no exception to this convention, especially being true in an advertisement with ex-steel plant worker Joe Soptic, speaking in Obama-affiliated Political Action Committee Priorities. The advertisement included many logical fallacies to argue against the Romney campaign. Those include post hoc reasoning, ad hominem, and slippery slope.
The advertisement consisted of just one man, Joe Soptic, an ex-steel plant worker, of GST Steel, speaking against Mitt Romney. He personally points blame on Romney for the death of his wife. He says that when “Mitt Romney and Bain closed the plant, I lost my health care, and my family lost their health care, and a short time after that my wife became ill.” He then proceeds to say that she passed aways twenty-two days after taking her to the Jackson County Hospital of cancer. The advertisement ends with Soptic saying that Romney “doesn’t realize what he’s done to anyone, and furthermore, I do not think Mitt Romney is concerned.” Priorities USA Action paid for the advertisement as well as responsible for the content.
The logical fallacy of post hoc reasoning is the main base of this advertisement. Post hoc reasoning being that there is an argument being made that one event cause the other when they are unrelated. The argument is that because Romney and Bain Capital closed the plant, Soptic’s wife died. These events are unrelated because Soptic’s illness was not the cause of Romney and Bain Capital closing down the plant. The addition that his wife “passed away in twenty-two days,” to the post hoc fallacy in the advertisement. An additional post hoc fallacy is the fact that Romney had left Bain Capital two years before GST Steel closed. This further disconnects this argument from the Romney campaign.
Another logical fallacy that is present throughout the advertisement is ad hominem. Ad hominem being
Citations: Byers, D (2012, July 12) Bain Capital: Romney left in Feb. 1999. Politico. Retrieved September 15, 2013, from http://www.politico.com/blogs/media/2012/07/bain-capital-romney-left-in-feb-128772.html Neuman, S (2012, August 25) A Guide To Spotting Pretzel Logic On The Campaign Trail. NPR. Retrieved September 14, 2013, from http://www.npr.org/blogs/itsallpolitics/2012/08/25/159990177/a-guide-to-spotting-pretzel-logic-on-the-campaign-trail