During her presidency of the short-lived Woman’s State Temperance Society (1852-1853), Elizabeth Cady Stanton,// as she was a staunch advocate of liberalized divorce laws, scandalized many of her most ardent supporters in her suggestion that drunkenness should be// made sufficient cause for divorce.

A. as she was a staunch advocate of liberalized divorce laws, scandalized many of her most ardent supporters in her suggestion that drunkenness should be
B. as she was a staunch advocate for liberalized divorce laws, scandalized many of her most ardent supporters by her suggestion of drunkenness being
C. in being a staunch advocate for liberalized divorce laws, had scandalized many of her most ardent supporters with the suggestion of drunkenness being
D. a staunch advocate of liberalized divorce laws, scandalized many of her most ardent supporters by suggesting that drunkenness be
E. a staunch advocate of liberalized divorce laws, she scandalized many of her most ardent supporters in suggesting that drunkenness should be

in the above question, pls, explain, why "as ..." is wrong in choice A,B, and C. What is the difference in meaning between the "as..." in choi A,B,C and the "comma..."

We're happy to help, but can you first please post the original source of this question?

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Jamie Nelson
ManhattanGMAT Instructor

Of course, it is gmatprep question which is printed out from the software.

This is a complicated sentence. Let's look at the non-underlined part:
"During her presidency . . . , Elizabeth Cady Stanton,

Because we have a comma right after "Elizabeth Cady Stanton", another modifier describing her must immediately follow her name. If we did not have this comma then the verb of the sentence should closely follow her name.

Which of the answer choices properly starts a modifier describing Elizabeth Cady Stanton?
A) as she was
B) as she was
C) in being
D) a staunch supporter
E) a staunch supporter

A and B, "as she was", is wordy and incorrect. C, "in being", is also incorrect. Always have suspicion toward the word "being". D and E are correct ways to start the modifier; they launch right into a description of her. This allows the construction:
Elizabeth Cady Stanton, a staunch advocate of liberalized divorce laws, scandalized . . .

D is the correct answer.

Please let me know if I can clarify further.

_________________
Jamie Nelson
ManhattanGMAT Instructor