[Im Cheol-yeong's Cheonggyeongudok] Why Did Lee Cheol-hee, Who Wants to Change Politics, Step Down from His Gold Badge?

Lost Between the Scholar's Awareness of Problems and the Merchant's Sense of Reality
However...
"If Politics Changes, Our Lives Change Too. Change Happens When It Happens"

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] "One must live with the scholarly awareness of a seosaeng (書生) and the merchant’s perspective. It is best to combine these two?having a principled and earnest spirit while realistically aiming for success." This was the life philosophy revealed by the late former President Kim Dae-jung on his 80th birthday in 2004.

Although he was recognized as a fighter against military dictatorship, his political path was once criticized from both extremes of the progressive and conservative camps. The extreme progressives labeled him a traitor who compromised with reality, while the extreme conservatives often tried to paint him with ideological colors.

A well-known critic familiar to the public recalled the extreme evaluations of former President Kim, saying, "Those who only think like merchants called him a communist, and those who only think like scholars called him a traitor." Over his lifetime, he ran for election 14 times, including 10 runs for the National Assembly, losing 7 times.

Ten years after his passing, a noticeably different scene was witnessed. Perhaps after experiencing endless political strife and hitting the wall of reality, two lawmakers who were newly recruited under public attention and first took office in the 20th National Assembly suddenly declared they would not run in the 21st general election.

They boldly stepped forward with the intention to change politics. Upon becoming lawmakers, they poured everything into realizing their ambitions. However, it seemed they found themselves battered in the process, appearing lost between the scholarly awareness and the merchant’s practical sense.

Their declarations of non-candidacy revealed a sense of desperation and skepticism. One lawmaker explained, "I have decided not to run in the next general election. While serving as a lawmaker, I too have become accustomed to helplessness and despair. Even if I serve one more term, I am not confident I can change our politics."

Another lawmaker stated, "I will not run in the general election. I will take responsibility for the worst National Assembly in history. The National Assembly, which should work for the country and the people, has been mired in political strife, neglecting the livelihood of the people and forgetting its duties." Representative Democratic Party recruits Lee Cheol-hee and Pyo Chang-won thus announced the end of their political journeys.

Lee began publishing books one after another. Around the time of his non-candidacy announcement, he released a translated work titled How Progressives Become the Majority (original title: The Creation of a Democratic Majority), recalling the so-called American "New Deal Coalition" from 1928 to 1936. This book suggests the direction politics should take to increase political participation. This time, he presented a book reflecting his usual thoughts, starting with the question, "Can politics change my life?"

This book seems to be filled with questions and answers aiming to summarize the reality of Korean democratic politics experienced as a first-term lawmaker. The author raises countless questions such as "Why is politics important?", "How does a president succeed?", "How are good politicians made?", "Is the National Assembly performing well?", "How should personnel be vetted?", "Why do nations fail?", and "Who is responsible?", while also proposing his own alternatives. He speaks about an 'inclusive political system' that represents more people, especially socioeconomically disadvantaged groups.

Why is politics important? The author answers that politics sets the rules of our lives, and our quality of life varies accordingly. Democratic politics is especially important because it is a system that can represent or advocate for the interests and demands of the weak or ordinary people, which previous forms of politics could not accommodate. Therefore, good politics is necessary. No matter how good the policies are, if politics is not good, it is difficult to implement them in reality. Thus, the author believes the difference between prosperous and poor countries is made by politics.

The author argues that the progressive camp also needs to break free from past inertia. Instead of obsessing over defeating conservatives or differentiating from them, the focus should be on the ultimate goal of changing the world. Democratic politics is fundamentally a product of numerical superiority and compromise. The author emphasizes, "Politics is a game of give and take, a game of mutual concession and compromise."

The issue boils down to one thing: the people who will practice such politics?in other words, politicians?are key. Good credentials, character, and public recognition alone are insufficient. A competent politician is one who clearly knows "whom they represent and how they will take responsibility." There is a need for a multi-centered core representing diverse groups such as "politicians representing working mothers," "politicians representing sexual minorities," "politicians for youth suffering from employment difficulties," "politicians representing displaced persons," and "politicians representing multicultural families."

Incumbent lawmaker Lee Cheol-hee, in the latter part of the book, dissects the tortuous processes he experienced, including the still unresolved controversy over the income-led growth theory, last year's chaotic personnel hearings, and the fast-track legislative process that plunged the National Assembly into turmoil. He incorporates the phrase by Italian intellectual Antonio Gramsci (1891?1937), "pessimism of the intellect and optimism of the will," along with former President Kim’s "scholarly awareness and merchant’s perspective" into the book.

The author’s effort to avoid cynicism about the political reality he experienced is evident throughout the book. "Honestly, even I don’t know when our politics will change. But it’s not far off. Many citizens share the belief that the problem lies in politics amid their hard lives. When politics changes, our lives change. If it changes, it changes."

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