Because
the government of Laconia provided considerable tax incentives to farmers, many newspapers, expecting that these tax incentives would allow farmers to invest more into their businesses and improve the profitability of Laconia’s agricultural sector, published articles stating that Laconian agriculture would soon become profitable. However, these newspapers did not consider that the
Laconian government provides tax incentives only to support the weakest segments of economy, which are not likely to become profitable any time soon.In the argument given, the two boldfaced portions play which of the following roles?
(A) The first provides evidence supporting the conclusion of the argument; the second gives a reason for questioning the conclusion.
(B) The first provides evidence supporting the conclusion; the second is the conclusion of the argument.
(C) The first is a statement explained by the argument; the second provides evidence in support of that statement.
(D) The first is a statement opposed by the argument as a whole; the second is evidence opposing that statement.
(E) The first is a statement explained by the argument as a whole; the second provides evidence opposing that statement.