Lee Jae-myung's 'Rejection Message' Backfires?... Byeong-gye Faction Calls It "Absurd and Embarrassing"

Iwonwook "Decline in Trust Toward the Party"
Yuintae "Messages Emerge Leading to Psychological Factionalism"
Parkchandae "Wouldn't It Have Been Better Not to Take a Position"

The vote on the arrest consent bill for Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, will take place in the National Assembly on the 21st. Following Lee's message to lawmakers the previous day urging a 'rejection,' the non-Lee faction expressed concerns about a 'loss of trust in the party.' Yoo In-tae, a senior figure and former Secretary-General of the National Assembly, voiced worries that "it will backfire."

Lee Won-wook, a lawmaker from the non-Lee faction, said on BBS's 'Jeon Young-shin's Morning Journal' on the 21st, "It's absurd and embarrassing," adding, "I thought, how many people can trust the leader's words now, aside from hardline supporters like Gaeddal?"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Lee had sent a message via SNS the day before, stating, "The approval of this clearly illegal and unjust arrest consent bill will give wings to the political prosecution's fabricated investigation," urging for its rejection. However, this message is completely opposite to his June declaration of 'waiving immunity from arrest,' which, according to Lee Won-wook, will lead to a decline in trust within the party. He expressed concern, saying, "A politician's word is like law. When the leader of the main opposition party breaks a promise like that without any prior procedure or apology, trust in the party can only fall."

Yoo, the former Secretary-General and senior party member, also pointed out on CBS Radio, "I think that message will cause a backlash far greater than expected," and added, "After that message, I believe it psychologically led to a split within the party."

He lamented, "When the arrest consent bill comes, wouldn't the reasonable step be for the leader to say, 'Please approve this. I will go for a substantive hearing. There is no evidence at all'? Who would have thought he would come out like this, issuing a plea for rejection?"

Yoo also conveyed that the reaction of lawmakers who saw this message was close to 'shock.' He said, "The atmosphere was one of surprise. Some even said harsh things like, 'Oh dear, I can't work with him in the party anymore,'" and added, "Even if the bill is rejected this time, it seems like a move to postpone the issue because of worries about internal strife ahead of this important regular session of the National Assembly. Ultimately, after the session ends, it looks like there will be a showdown in December anyway."

It is also known that Park Chan-dae, a pro-Lee member of the Democratic Party's Supreme Council, opposed Lee's message urging rejection. On MBC's 'Kim Jong-bae's Focus,' Park said, "I thought it would be better not to take a position," and later added, "I didn't strongly oppose it," indicating that even within the pro-Lee faction, there was awareness of the risks of issuing a rejection message.

However, there are also reports that Lee's message helped lawmakers who were struggling to decide between approval and rejection. Kim Min-seok, chairman of the Democratic Party's Policy Committee, said on CBS Radio's 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show,' "Some people say that the leader's stance on the arrest consent bill actually helped their judgment."

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