February 5, 2023 - This January 2019 tweet is a straw man argument because it does not counter the Democrat’s real argument that there should not be a border wall between the United States and Mexico. Instead, it makes a straw-man argument that the Democrats are only arguing against the wall to gain political favour, even though they know a wall would help.

September 11, 2023 - Scenario: A Democrat politician says he wants to spend more money on the social safety net. His Republican opponents call him a communist. Straw man fallacies exist on both sides of the political spectrum.

August 27, 2022 - I was told I was mentally unstable if I didn't believe that a math question that (paraphrasing) said Jimmy's dad gave him 5 apples, he gave his other dad two of them how many did he have." was grooming. If this guy's son is sucking D at 18, does he believe he would be into women if he hadn't heard this when he was 8? His religious ass is offended so he calls it grooming. ... A strawman argument is when you refute something that nobody is otherwise arguing....you are refuting something obviously not the case...so it is easy...but nobody is actually arguing the contrary.

3 weeks ago - Throughout the 20th century, and ... when right-wing political leaders and commentators used communism as a straw man while denouncing the proposals of centrists, moderate liberals, or even moderate conservatives...

October 9, 2023 - Regardless of their form, straw ... against Y instead of X, claiming that original position X has been refuted. The “war on Christmas” is an example of a straw man argument used by both sides of the political ...

For example, Porter (Citation2002) indicated that the technique is “frequently used in political rhetoric, functioning as a cheap way of winning points while evading the main issue” (p. 104). Talisse and Aikin (Citation2006) commented that the straw man technique “is among the most prevalent forms of fallacious ...

November 30, 2024 - In reality, the proposal for Indigenous voice to Parliament did not aim to establish separate sovereignty or states within Australia but rather aimed to enshrine the recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Australians and give them a stronger platform to engage in the political processes that impact their lives and communities. By misrepresenting the argument, the opponent has created a distorted version of the original proposal that is easier to attack and dismiss. This strawman fallacy obscures the actual goals of the proposal and hinders a productive and honest debate on how best to recognize and incorporate Indigenous perspectives into Australian democracy.

April 28, 2023 - Another example might be if you are in Proposition on the motion, "THBT parents should have access to their children's social media passwords". If the opposition claim that you want parents to read every text message that a child sends and receives on their phone, or vet every photo they post - that's a straw man argument, because it is not what you are arguing. Both of these straw man fallacy examples are extreme caricatures of your position which are being brought into the debate in an attempt to discredit your broader point.

November 13, 2025 - Straw man fallacy exampleAt a school board meeting discussing the use of tablets in classrooms, a parent argues that the proposal suggests that children don’t need to learn to write by hand anymore. This misrepresents the plan, which is to use tablets alongside traditional writing. Straw man arguments can be found in controversial discussions on a wide range of topics, in contexts ranging from formal political ...

May 13, 2022 - If a politician says you’re either with them or against them, don’t take the bait. They’re painting a situation in black and white when there are many shades of grey: think pandemic policy framed in zero-sum terms as a choice between health and the economy, or the claim climate change action will necessarily hurt jobs. (The already mentioned Solomon Islands strawman does double time as a false dilemma).

Employing straw man arguments in political debates signals we are not taking an opposing point of view and their reasons seriously because we misrepresented them from the outset." Vanderbilt University's Scott Aikin details the faults of a straw man argument in our most recent Democracy Minute.

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January 24, 2026 - Whether used as a deliberate strategy or unintentionally, the tactic can obstruct meaningful dialogue and undermine trust in political discourse. One of the most famous uses was Vice President Richard Nixon’s infamous Checker’s speech, where he used the straw man fallacy to deflect from ...

March 10, 2022 - ... A: “We should divert more federal funding to social programs as those help people manage their expenses and contribute to the economy.” · B: “That is completely ridiculous!

March 3, 2021 - But did you see the senator mention education at all? This straw man argument can devolve into a hasty generalization by the public as well. No one knows where we really came from, and yet the theory of evolution is a hotbed of controversy. And where there's controversy, there's room for fallacies.

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June 19, 2019 - That time as the clock ticks down ... relevance to the topic at hand. One Straw Man argument could be based on arguments for banning guns in schools....

June 23, 2023 - The Strawman Fallacy is a common logical fallacy that occurs when a person misrepresents their opponent's argument in order to make it easier to attack. By exaggerating, misrepresenting, or just completely fabricating someone's argument, it's much easier to present your own position as being reasonable. Here are some real-life examples: In political debates, it's common to see candidates use the strawman fallacy.