Yoo Si-min: "President Lee Shows Arrogance of Power... Dismantling His Own Ruling Coalition"

Yoo Simin Strongly Criticizes President Lee on YouTube
"Not Pursuing Communication, Rapport, or Empathy"
On the Party Convention: "Contradicts the Spirit of a Republic"

Recently, Yoo Si-min, former Chairperson of the Roh Moo-hyun Foundation, who has been at odds with President Lee Jae-myung, issued a strong critique, saying, "The demeanor President Lee has displayed over the past year is that of an arrogant power-holder."

Former Chairman Yoo Si-min of the Roh Moo-hyun Foundation appeared on the YouTube channel 'Journalist' and strongly criticized President Lee Jae-myung. YouTube

On the 24th, Yoo appeared on the YouTube channel 'Journalist,' run by journalist-turned-YouTuber Jang Insoo, and made these remarks. He said, "I supported President Lee, but I did not worship him," continuing, "I trusted him because he promised to become a tool of history. He said he was running because he needed authority, not power, and that's why I had complete faith in him."

He stated that he would not question the cause of the change. Yoo said, "It is possible that we misjudged the person and supported him, or that we assessed him correctly but he changed after coming to power. Either way, it is not important. What matters is his current behavior." He added, "The president is not engaging in communication, rapport, or empathy."

To Lee's supporters, he urged a more realistic perspective. He said, "We must accept that the president we supported is exhibiting such behavior and, given that reality, reflect on what we should do in these conditions," adding, "This is how we keep our reason from turning a blind eye." He continued, "The moment our reason falls asleep, a much stronger monster will emerge immediately."

Yoo also commented on the Democratic Party's August 17 National Convention, which elected Kim Minseok as leader. Yoo criticized, "The president sent his proxy to seize control of the party. This goes against the very spirit of a republic." He argued, "A president trying to hand-pick and install the ruling party leader is a step toward monarchy or aristocracy."

However, he offered a different assessment of the convention results themselves. He said, "At about 54%, the person picked by the president was elected, but 46%, including three top party officials, went to the non-mainstream faction—meaning there is no clear winner. In this sense, the republican spirit was protected." On the fact that the top 1st to 3rd highest-voted party officials in the poll were from the non-mainstream, he said, "I was genuinely surprised."

Regarding the defeat of Kim Yong, former Vice President of the Democratic Institute, Yoo interpreted it as a message from the party’s support base. He said, "Though I'm not a full member with voting rights in the Democratic Party, citizens who strongly support the party and worry for its future actively responded to phone polling and chose to reject Kim Yong," adding, "It's like they smashed a window on a car you valued highly."

Yoo continued, "President Lee is dismantling his own ruling coalition," and added, "The situation is becoming extremely unstable." He further explained, "President Lee united all the progressive and reformist forces in a coalition to overcome crisis and won 49%. That is his foundation, and he has been dismantling it himself." Regarding the national convention, he said, "Democratic Party members have lost half their influence," adding, "This is extremely fatal for the president."

He said, "There has never been a precedent for a president taking office under such favorable circumstances. The National Assembly has more than 180 cooperative seats and even over 160 seats for the ruling party alone," he commented. He went on, "His approval ratings were very high, and the ruling party followed his words closely. All he needed to do was work diligently." Then he added, "If the president just devoted himself to his job, all problems—including even personal ones—could be resolved, so I do not understand why he came up with the bizarre term 'structural majority.'"

'Structural majority' is a phrase President Lee used last month during a luncheon with former President Moon Jae-in. Last month, on the YouTube program 'Mabool Show,' Yoo described this as a "plan for political realignment," warning, "This will lead to the collapse of the entire progressive camp." Meanwhile, Kim Minseok, leader of the Democratic Party, interpreted the term during his campaign debate as "an expansion that unites not only progressives but also conservatives and moderates."

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