President Lee Meets First-Term Lawmakers: "We Must Harness Public Aspirations for Reform... Let's Bring Positive Change"

Dinner with First-Term Democratic Party Lawmakers
Emphasis on Housing Market Stabilization as a Key Livelihood Issue
No Mention of Hormuz or Supplementary Budget

On March 16, President Lee Jae-myung met with first-term lawmakers from the Democratic Party of Korea and emphasized the role of the ruling party in effectively addressing reform and livelihood issues such as prosecutorial reform and housing market stabilization.

President Lee Jae-myung and First Lady Kim Hye-kyung are greeting attendees during a dialogue with local artists of Changwon held at the Changdong Art Village Art Center in Masanhappo-gu, Changwon, Gyeongnam on the 15th. Photo by Yonhap News Agency White House Correspondent Team

Kim Kipyo, spokesperson for the Democratic Party, gave a briefing about the dinner and said, “President Lee stated that we must harness the public’s burning desire for change to ensure the world is reformed in a useful and stable way. He called for humility, seriousness, and meticulousness in our actions as the ruling party to bring about positive change.”

Kim Kipyo added, “The President stressed that our government must succeed, and that compared to when we were the opposition, we should invest more energy, study harder, and craft more thorough policies. He also mentioned that since the demand for direct democracy has grown in this era, it would be good to make greater efforts to communicate directly with the people.”

President Lee particularly emphasized the stabilization of the real estate market. According to spokesperson Kim, “He stressed the need to definitely get housing prices under control,” and explained, “He briefly addressed the overall issue of real estate price stability among his various remarks.”

Kim Kipyo also conveyed that President Lee has a special affection for first-term lawmakers. He said, “As someone who has overcome major turning points together, he feels a particular connection and deep fondness for first-term lawmakers.”

Regarding the United States’ request for the dispatch of warships to the Strait of Hormuz, Kim Kipyo said, “There was no mention of it.” He also stated that there was “absolutely no mention” of the supplementary budget.

After having dinner with 34 first-term Democratic Party lawmakers the previous day, President Lee met with the remaining 32 lawmakers on this day. The dinner was also attended by Cho Jungshik, Senior Special Political Advisor to the President, Hong Ikpyo, Senior Presidential Secretary for Political Affairs, Jeong Eulho, Secretary for Political Affairs, and Kang Yujeong, Presidential Spokesperson.

The dinner menu included cold beef brisket and mushroom salad with citron soy sauce, traditional royal health stew, pollack roe fish cakes and buckwheat turnip salad, grilled wagyu ribeye with seasonal vegetables, root vegetable rice with mallow soup, seasonal fruits, and Jeju carrot tart.

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