Amid the Tae Young-ho Transcript Fallout... Eyes Turn to the Ruling Party's Ethics Committee

The release of the 'transcript' containing remarks by Tae Young-ho, a Supreme Council member of the People Power Party, has caused a stir, drawing attention to the extent of disciplinary action the ruling party's Ethics Committee might impose. Kim Jae-won, another Supreme Council member who has been problematic due to his comments on the May 18 incident and his relationship with Pastor Jeon Kwang-hoon, is also being mentioned as a likely target for disciplinary measures. If severe sanctions are imposed, there are concerns that the ruling party's leadership could be shaken.

On the 3rd, former People Power Party leader Lee Jun-seok said on CBS's 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show,' "If a party membership suspension of more than one year is imposed, the disciplinary action will effectively end after the general election," emphasizing, "In that case, the top leadership will, in my view, be in a situation where it is difficult to make decisions." This suggests that if two Supreme Council members receive suspensions of over a year, the Supreme Council may struggle to function properly.

Tae Young-ho, Supreme Council Member of the People Power Party, is speaking at the Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, on the 6th. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

Lee, who previously received a one-year party membership suspension for his 'Yangduguyuk' (a Chinese idiom meaning 'a sheep's head with a dog's meat') remark, raised his voice for strong disciplinary action against the two, saying, "I was suspended for a year for using a four-character idiom, but now they have insulted the May 18 and April 3 incidents, so shouldn't the punishment be even stronger?"

Hong Joon-pyo, a senior party member and Mayor of Daegu, also called for severe sanctions through his social media on the same day, stating, "Following the Jeon Kwang-hoon controversy and the recent nomination interference scandal, these two individuals have thrown the party into chaos with an absurd internal strife. Although there may be differences in the degree of punishment, severe disciplinary action seems inevitable," urging the Ethics Committee to impose strict penalties.

Within the ruling party, while 'severe disciplinary action' is not explicitly mentioned, it is believed that the Tae Young-ho 'transcript incident' could influence the Ethics Committee's decision. Yoo Sang-beom, the People Power Party's chief spokesperson, said on KBS's 'Choi Kyung-young's Strong Current Affairs,' "The Ethics Committee has decided to focus disciplinary action on two remarks by Tae Young-ho: the 'JMS' comment and the 'Jeju April 3 incident' comment," adding, "However, since the disciplinary discussion ultimately concerns damage to the party's dignity and loss of public trust due to inappropriate remarks, these issues are likely to be referenced as part of the deliberation process."

Jang Ye-chan, a youth Supreme Council member, also said on MBC's 'Kim Jong-bae's Focus,' "I believe this controversy itself will influence the Ethics Committee's disciplinary outcome and sentencing, and the committee members will examine it very carefully."

The Ethics Committee's conclusion could be a critical turning point, as it may also affect the party's approval ratings amid internal strife. At the time of the party convention, the People Power Party's approval ratings led the Democratic Party due to the 'convention effect,' but currently, it is trailing behind. In a recent Realmeter poll, the Democratic Party recorded 44.7%, while the People Power Party stood at 35.2%.

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