President Lee lacks loyal advisers willing to speak bluntly

Kim Sung-tak

The author is an editorial writer at the JoongAng Ilbo.

Debate has intensified ahead of the June 3 local elections over the Democratic Party (DP)’s proposed special counsel bill targeting what it calls “fabricated prosecutions” and possible indictment cancellations. The opposition has fiercely criticized provisions in the bill that could allow charges tied to cases involving President Lee Jae Myung to be withdrawn, turning the issue into a major election controversy. In several closely contested regions, polling gaps between ruling and opposition candidates have narrowed, prompting DP floor leader Han Byung-do to say decisions regarding the legislation would be deferred until after the elections.

Han Byung-do, floor leader of the Democratic Party, explains a proposed amendment to the Korean Constitution during the first plenary session of the 435th extraordinary National Assembly held at the National Assembly on May 7. [YONHAP]

The DP delayed handling the bill after President Lee signaled his position. Party leaders, including Jung Chung-rae, had strongly defended the legitimacy of a special counsel investigation tied to indictment cancellations. Last November, when the party attempted to advance legislation suspending President Lee’s ongoing trials, a message reportedly emerged warning against “dragging the president into the center of political conflict.” Yet no such restraint appeared regarding the push to cancel indictments, leading many within the party to conclude that the president supported the effort.

Then the presidential office stated that “the ruling party should determine specific timing and procedures through public consultation and deliberation,” and party leaders immediately adjusted course. The future direction of the indictment-cancellation initiative after the elections, therefore, appears to depend largely on President Lee himself.

The lawmaker who led the ruling party’s push was Rep. Lee Geon-tae, who previously served as Lee Jae Myung’s attorney in the Daejang-dong development corruption case. Lee Geon-tae sent personal letters to all DP lawmakers urging them to join a caucus to support the cancellation of indictments. At a press conference held by the group, which reportedly drew more than 100 lawmakers, he argued that while the Korean president has constitutional immunity from criminal prosecution, the United States also effectively dismisses cases filed before a president takes office under Justice Department interpretations.

Members of the caucus also raised their voices during the parliamentary investigation into alleged fabricated prosecutions, attempting to establish justification for withdrawing indictments. Such lawmakers will likely be classified as staunchly pro-Lee figures by hardline party supporters. President Lee may even have appreciated their loyalty. Yet these moves could ultimately have inflicted the greatest political damage on him.

Since taking office, Lee has distinguished himself from previous DP presidents by adopting a pragmatic course less constrained by ideological divisions. He retained Song Mi-ryung, agriculture minister from the Yoon Suk Yeol administration, and appointed experts with major corporate backgrounds to key ministries. The appointments were interpreted as rewarding competence regardless of political identity. Lee, who has repeatedly argued that “ideology and political camps do not put food on the table,” emphasized centrist economic policies while showing diplomatic flexibility with Japan that moved beyond historical disputes. Measures aimed at revitalizing the stock market even fueled talk of a previously unimaginable Kospi reaching 7000.

Yet the ruling party’s aggressive drive for the special counsel bill on the cancellation of indictments exposed Lee to a completely different line of attack. Opposition figures accused him of attempting to “erase his own crimes through a special counsel appointment,” calling it a “self-pardon legislative coup.” Some even invoked comparisons to Adolf Hitler. The People Power Party, which had struggled politically after accusations of sympathizing with insurrectionist forces, was effectively handed a new political weapon by the DP itself.

If prosecutors under the Yoon administration committed wrongdoing, it should be uncovered and addressed appropriately. Yet during the parliamentary investigation, former Ssangbangwool Vice Chairman Bang Yong-cheol testified that $700,000 had been delivered to North Korean official Ri Ho-nam at a hotel in Manila in exchange for arranging a visit to North Korea. Former Ssangbangwool Chairman Kim Seong-tae also rejected claims that the $8 million sent to North Korea was intended to facilitate then-Gyeonggi governor Lee Jae Myung’s visit rather than manipulate Ssangbangwool’s stock price.

Ruling party lawmakers, loud in rhetoric but less convincing in performance, ended up broadcasting testimony potentially damaging to the president in real time. Did they fail to foresee that by pushing forward collectively under the assumption that the president would welcome it, the backlash could drive a president not yet one year into office into accusations of authoritarianism?

President Lee Jae Myung heads to his seat after the national pledge ceremony during a senior presidential secretaries’ meeting at Yeomin Hall of the presidential office on May 7. [YONHAP]

It would be deeply unfortunate if, among presidential aides and ruling-party lawmakers, there were only flatterers and no one willing to speak candidly to the president. No matter how substantial the administration’s achievements may become, they could be overshadowed by the perception that “the president used power granted by the people for personal benefit.” In Korea, which has passed through both military dictatorship and democratization, the private use of presidential power remains one of the public’s deepest sensitivities.

The achievements of Emperor Taizong of Tang, widely regarded as one of China’s greatest rulers, were possible in part because of Wei Zheng, a minister who did not hesitate to offer blunt criticism even at the risk of angering the emperor. If President Lee hopes to become a successful leader, he needs advisers willing to tell him to distance himself from efforts to cancel indictments. If a president ultimately earns public respect through responsible governance, concerns about legal risks after leaving office may prove insignificant.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.