Sim Jae-cheol "To unify conservatives... must not even mention the 'T' word of impeachment"

Sim Jae-cheol, floor leader of the Liberty Korea Party, is attending the floor strategy meeting held at the National Assembly on the 7th and delivering a speech. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Ji-eun] On the 8th, Shim Jae-cheol, floor leader of the Liberty Korea Party, stated that regarding the three principles of unification proposed by Yoo Seung-min, a member of the New Conservative Party, it is positive for unification that both sides completely avoid mentioning impeachment.

At a press conference held at the National Assembly floor leader's office that day, Shim said, "Among the three principles of conservative unification, there is the phrase 'Let's cross the river of impeachment,' but personally, I think we should not bring up the topic of impeachment at all."

He explained, "'Let's cross the river' might mean that since it has been well said, we should say nothing more, or it might mean that because there is much controversy, we should say nothing more. But if impeachment is mentioned, it will inevitably become noisy," adding, "I hope neither side even utters the 'ㅌ' of impeachment."

Shim emphasized, "There is no need to use expressions like 'cross the river' in the three principles of unification. If even the 'ㅌ' of impeachment is mentioned, things will not progress," but added, "I have not communicated this with party leader Hwang Kyo-ahn; this is my personal opinion."

Regarding Prime Minister nominee Jeong Sye-kyun, Shim said, "I pointed out that having a former National Assembly Speaker as a prime minister nominee violates the separation of powers and insults the National Assembly, but Jeong could not directly refute this and only made a strange wordplay excuse saying 'separation of powers is not a personal separation.' I wonder if he accepted the nomination despite knowing the discomfort of the legislative members for personal gain," strongly criticizing him.

However, on the approval of the prime minister nominee, Shim showed a reserved stance, saying, "We will hold a party meeting tomorrow (the 9th) to listen to the opinions of the members and decide," contrasting with his strong stance until the 5th that "the consent motion must be rejected."

Regarding whether to continue the filibuster (legally obstructing parliamentary proceedings through unlimited debate) at the plenary session on the 9th, he replied, "Let's wait a bit longer," and added, "I proposed to the Democratic Party that we only handle livelihood bills tomorrow."

Shim said, "I heard that the Democratic Party plans to finally submit fast-track bills such as the adjustment of investigative authority between the police and prosecution and the three kindergarten laws, but I asked them not to do so," adding, "Let's not spoil the handling of livelihood bills that started on a good note." If the ruling party continues with the plan to submit the investigative authority adjustment bill tomorrow, it is interpreted as an intention to carry out a filibuster. When asked if they plan to use the plenary session bills as leverage regarding the fast-track bills, he replied, "Let's wait and see."

Meanwhile, Shim did not hold back criticism of not only nominee Jeong but also President Moon Jae-in, National Assembly Speaker Moon Hee-sang, and the government. He said, "Yesterday, all media airtime was wasted on President Moon's self-praising New Year's address. The first opposition party should be guaranteed the right to rebut with appropriate and correct voices," and raised his voice, "Regarding President Moon's New Year's address, North Korea today evaluated it as 'self-serving self-praise' and 'disgusting delusional clowning.' Even if he does not listen to the opposition's harsh words, I wonder if President Moon will heed North Korea's evaluation."

He continued, "Speaker Moon is threatening to forcibly submit the appointment consent motion if the personnel hearing report is not adopted. This confirms once again that he is a servant of the regime," adding, "Everyone knows that he is blinded by hereditary nomination of his son and is acting as a lackey of power."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.