After Overseas Trip, Lee to Shift Focus to Domestic Issues

President Lee Skips Public Events and Senior Aides Meeting
Coordination Skills to Be Tested as National Assembly Convenes
Must Bridge Gaps Between Ruling Party and Government, Show Cooperation with Opposition
Key Issue: Recovering Approval

President Lee Jae Myung and First Lady Kim Hye Kyung are greeting as they disembark from Air Force One upon arriving at Seoul Airport in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province on the 28th after completing their visits to Japan and the United States. Photo by Yonhap News

After resolving international issues and returning home, President Lee Jae Myung now faces a series of complex domestic challenges. From the national budget bill to various reform legislation, numerous issues await President Lee’s coordination. He is also tasked with demonstrating efforts to resolve conflicts between the ruling party and the government and to communicate with the opposition. Whether he can use this opportunity to raise his approval rating, which has fallen below 50%, remains a key question.

President Lee returned to Seoul Airport in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province at around 1:30 a.m. on the 28th, after completing a six-day, three-night tour of the United States and Japan. Given his late-night arrival, President Lee did not schedule any public activities for the day. The weekly senior aides meeting, usually held on Thursday afternoons and presided over by the President, was also skipped. President Lee is expected to rest while reviewing the outcomes of his trip with his aides and assessing domestic issues.

President Lee’s first official event after his overseas trip is likely to be a Cabinet meeting. The government must convene a Cabinet meeting to review and approve the budget bill before the regular session of the National Assembly begins on September 1. In fact, tomorrow (the 29th) is the only day left this month when a Cabinet meeting can be held. Since this will be the new administration’s first budget bill for next year, excluding the supplementary budget, it is expected that President Lee will personally preside and explain the nature and significance of the budget.

President Lee’s Leadership Put to the Test... Key Issues: Ruling Party Reconciliation and Opposition Cooperation

When the regular session of the National Assembly opens, President Lee’s ability to coordinate state affairs will be put to the test. The ruling Democratic Party of Korea hopes for swift passage of reform bills, but the government is calling for a more measured approach. The opposition People Power Party is keeping its distance not only from the ruling party but also from the presidential office. Jang Donghyuk, the newly appointed leader of the People Power Party, declined President Lee’s invitation, saying, “A simple meeting is meaningless.” President Lee must therefore align the views of the ruling party and the government, while also demonstrating cooperation with the opposition.

However, coordinating these issues is expected to be far from easy. For example, the prosecution reform, which was supposed to be completed before Chuseok, has not even seen the relevant amendment submitted. The plan is to abolish the Prosecutors’ Office and establish the Serious Crimes Investigation Agency and the Prosecution Agency, but the government and the ruling party have expressed differences over where to place the investigation agency. Organizational restructuring, which would separate the Ministry of Economy and Finance and create a new Ministry of Climate and Energy, has also raised questions about possible disagreements with the National Policy Planning Committee, as the plan has not yet been made public.

The controversy over the criteria for major shareholders subject to capital gains tax on stocks remains unresolved. The Ministry of Economy and Finance announced in its 2025 tax law revision that it would lower the threshold for major shareholders subject to capital gains tax from the current 5 billion won to 1 billion won, the same as during the Moon Jae In administration. However, growing controversy among investors and opposition within the ruling party have prevented a conclusion. While the presidential office has stated it will “watch the coordination between the ruling party and the government,” public opinion may demand presidential intervention the longer the decision is delayed.

Another key issue is how President Lee will recover his approval rating, which declined after the pardon of Cho Kuk. According to the 173rd regular poll by Media Tomato released on this day, 48.3% gave a positive assessment of President Lee’s administration. This marks a 4.5 percentage point drop from 52.8% two weeks ago. Although public sentiment regarding the Korea-US summit was not reflected, this is the first time his approval rating has fallen below 50%.

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