[Opinion] The Politics of Tit-for-Tat, Democratic Party at a Crossroads

The Democratic Party, which had been holding on with a tit-for-tat approach, now stands at a crossroads. Amidst struggling with judicial risks, a money envelope scandal has also erupted. With the opposition party's credibility plummeting, President Yoon Seok-yeol remains self-centered. His controversial behavior continues as he carries on with bold remarks suitable only among colleagues on the international stage. This is the tit-for-tat nature of Korean politics. It is a symbiotic relationship relying on the opponent's missteps, and over the past year, neither side has improved its constitution. The Democratic Party, which lost the presidential election, has fallen deeper into the mire rather than innovating. President Yoon remains resilient even though about 60% of the public evaluates his governance as poor.

In representative politics led by political parties, the opposition plays the role of mediating critical public opinion. The Democratic Party is a giant single party holding an overwhelming number of seats in the National Assembly, second only to the Democratic Party of the Second Republic. Despite its size, it lacks real power because it is the opposition and does not have public trust. In fact, the overwhelming victory of the Democratic Party in the 2020 21st general election was more due to public admiration for 'Jung Eun-kyung's COVID-19 response' than trust in the Democratic Party itself. The Democratic Party had already lost trust and seen its support base fragment through the Cho Kuk incident. Although it came to power fueled by impeachment energy under the slogan 'Is this a country?', what it showed after taking office was just another power cartel. The assets of the past democratization movement were exhausted after several terms in power, and the party now faces a paradox in confronting the post-democratization challenges of coexistence and inclusion of diversity.

Just one year after the general election, the Democratic Party suffered a crushing defeat in the by-elections and handed over power to a former prosecutor general who delivered an uppercut last year. There was no reflection or innovation following the failure. If the past Democratic Party could claim to be a democratization force, today's Democratic Party should have demonstrated values and visions suitable for this era. Instead of party innovation, it relied on conspiracy theory-driven populist politics like the 'Nakkomsu' style. This became a factor that lowered trust in the Democratic Party. It merely coexisted by relying on the missteps of President Yoon Seok-yeol and the ruling party, who are 'doing this for the first time.'

Only the bare-faced will to power, devoid of shame or common sense, stood out. Although the party leader resigned taking responsibility for the presidential election defeat, the defeated candidate absurdly succeeded to that position. Eventually, the party made itself vulnerable to judicial risks by nominating him as party leader while he was under investigation for the Daejang-dong scandal. Despite the legislative intent of the Agenda Coordination Committee to guarantee opportunities for minority opinions and reconcile differences, the party neutralized the committee through the loophole of leaving the party and becoming independent. In this way, absurdities were pushed through for power struggles. President Moon Jae-in and then Senior Secretary for Civil Affairs Cho Kuk said that prosecutorial reform was completed with the establishment of the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials and adjustment of investigative authority, leaving only improvements in practices. However, prosecutorial reform, which has been distorted into a tool for power struggles, has been continuously invoked through measures like 'complete prosecution reform' (Geomsu Wanbak).

The key question is how the Democratic Party will respond to the two unprecedented crises it is experiencing in Korean party history. Although it is a giant in terms of seats in the National Assembly, without major innovation, it is no different from a dinosaur in an ice age. The assets of past democratization have been exhausted. Having become the ruling power, it has enjoyed political vested interests and now must face the challenges of democracy after democratization itself. Then one might ask, is President Yoon Seok-yeol and the ruling party any better? Polls tell the story. It is tit-for-tat. There is no particular comparative advantage in morality or competence. In fact, the Democratic Party is currently cornered morally. Of course, checks and criticism of the president and the ruling power come first. However, it cannot be overlooked that the absurd actions of the Democratic Party, which has become a power cartel, are rather diluting the public's checks and criticism of the government and ruling party.

Kim Man-heum, Distinguished Professor at Hansung University, Former Director of the National Assembly Research Service

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