After Democratic Party Chairman Lee Jae-myung was appointed to head the Innovation Commission on May 5, the conflict within the Democratic Party grew on the sixth day, even though the honorary chairman of the Other Hundred Years Foundation, Kyung, resigned less than a day later. Bimyeonggye demanded Lee’s resignation, saying he was responsible for everything. Questions have also been raised about Lee’s decision to appoint such a controversial figure to the Innovation Committee. In the Democratic Party, there are analysts who believe that Lee, who is under pressure to resign due to “judicial risk토토사이트,” may have been trying to take control of the party by using innovation to subdue Bimyeong-gye, who has been swaying him.
In response to Lee’s ‘Ie-Kyung card,’ the Democratic Party said, “It seems that Lee chose someone who is definitely on Lee Jae-myung’s side and is not afraid to get blood on his hands for innovation.” They needed someone who could sort out the pro-Lee and anti-Lee conflicts and reorganize the party around Lee Jae-myung.
Lee is categorized by the opposition as a moderate member of the late Kim Geun-tae (GT) faction, but he has been active outside the party, running his own business. In 2018, he signed a declaration calling for the release of former Unified Progressive Party lawmaker Lee Seok-ki, who was convicted of inciting civil unrest, including hitting state facilities during a state of emergency. He has continued to make conspiratorial and extreme claims on Facebook and in media articles, such as “the Cheonan self-destructed” and “the epicenter of the coronavirus is the United States.”
In 2019, Lee also proposed a “Movement to Protect Lee Jae-myung” when the then-Gyeonggi governor was sentenced to death by the second trial court for election law violations. In November 2021, at the height of the presidential race, he wrote on Facebook, “The score between Lee Jae-myung and Yoon Seok-yeol is perfectly 100:0. A pro-Lee lawmaker said, “It’s clear that the chairman of the board is basically a GT, but an ardent Lee supporter. He was trying to create a pro-Lee innovation committee.”
In fact, during the verification process, Lee’s party reportedly found out much of what he had written on Facebook and other social media sites, and proceeded with the appointment. “I don’t know if the claims of self-destruction and manipulation of the Cheonan were verified in advance, but other than that, I didn’t see anything else as a disqualifying reason to appoint him as the head of the party’s innovation committee,” a key party official said. Jang Kyung-tae said on MBC radio on the same day, “The very idea of reform is a pain in the ass,” adding, “You have to be different from someone who has lived a very moderate and easy life.” The idea is that it is difficult to reform the party if you are not a rigid person.
But the appointment, which was shared with only a few in the party, lasted less than a day. “I think Lee is being chased by the money envelope case, the Kim Nam-guk coin case, and his own judicial risk,” said a member of the Bimyeonggye over the phone, “Otherwise, I don’t understand the process of appointing the innovation chairman.” Lee was recently criticized for losing his leadership in the money envelope and coin scandals by being too warmongering. In addition, Lee himself is facing three trials for election law violations this month alone, and the trials for the “Daejang-dong Case” and “Seongnam FC Illegal Sponsorship Money Case” will begin in earnest next month. This is a huge burden for Lee, who has been asked since he ran for party leader whether he can perform his duties as party leader smoothly due to judicial risks.
Despite the accusations against Lee, the Democratic Party said today that it will find a new candidate for the innovation chairman. A party official said, “We will thoroughly review from the beginning.” Some observers believe that Lee will remain in charge until at least the end of the year instead of handing over full power to the innovation committee. Under the Democratic Party’s constitution, if a leader resigns with less than eight months left in his or her term, the central committee elects a new leader without holding a new convention. If Lee, who took office in August last year for a two-year term, stays on until December, the central committee can effectively name a successor.
“The nomination and verification process should be revealed and held accountable,” Bimyeonggye said after Lee resigned as chairman of the innovation committee, which was announced by Lee himself, in less than nine hours. Representative Lee Sang-min, a five-term lawmaker, said on CBS Radio on the same day, “The innovation itself is so wounded from the beginning that it will not be an easy start. The festering and bursting comes from the incompleteness of Lee’s leadership.” “Lee should resign as soon as possible,” he said. On Facebook, former lawmaker Kim Hae-young said, “The Democratic Party is showing the appearance of a party for a certain individual named Lee Jae-myung.”