Democratic Party publicly criticizes Chief Justice Cho Hee-de… pledges 'people's livelihood first' National Assembly

On the 27th, the final day of the Chuseok holiday, the Democratic Party of Korea held a press briefing at the National Assembly and set the direction for the upcoming regular session around an 'all-in on livelihood' agenda, while also issuing public criticism of Chief Justice Cho Hee-de (the top official representing the judiciary as a whole). Attention is turning to a regular session that will see livelihood-related bills and conflict with the judiciary unfold side by side.

Kwon Chil-seung, the party's policy committee chairman, said at the briefing that the ruling and opposition policy committees had agreed to push swift legislation centered on shared campaign pledges and priorities in livelihood areas. Kwon listed easing housing and transportation costs, helping young people build assets, strengthening capital markets, and revitalizing the alleyway economy as legislative tasks.

On the farmland survey, policy committee chairman Kwon rebutted the 'nationalization conspiracy theory' as a political attack inconsistent with the facts. Kwon said minor or customary violations would not be penalized, and that a special law would be enacted within the year to address the issue.

Park Sung-joon, the party's chief spokesperson, criticized Chief Justice Cho, who during President Lee Jae-myung's overseas trip refused the Blue House's request to renominate Constitutional Court justices, relaying citizens' views that 'smiling to one's face while stabbing in the back is unbecoming of a Chief Justice' and calling it 'the conduct of a politician.' The Democratic Party chose to publicly criticize Cho in the party's own name.