President Lee Jae-myung greets Chief Justice Cho Hee-de with 'How have you been?'
President Lee Jae-myung visited the National Assembly on the 2nd to deliver a government policy speech on the 2027 budget bill — a speech in which the administration directly explains the direction of state affairs to the people at the National Assembly — and asked for bipartisan cooperation from National Assembly Speaker Cho Jung-sik and other key figures across the five branches (the major institutions spanning the legislative, executive, and judicial branches), as well as the leaders of the ruling and opposition parties. The president attended a pre-speech chat held in the National Assembly speaker's reception room at around 9:40 a.m. The gathering was also attended by Chief Justice Cho Hee-de, Constitutional Court President Kim Sang-hwan, Board of Audit and Inspection Chairman Kim Ho-chul, Prime Minister Han Sung-sook, Acting National Election Commission Chairman Wi Chul-hwan, Democratic Party of Korea Chairman Kim Min-seok and House Leader Han Byung-do, People Power Party Chairman Jang Dong-hyuk, and Reform Party of Cho Kuk Chairman Shin Jang-sik.
When shaking hands with Chief Justice Cho Hee-de at the reception, President Lee asked, "How have you been?" Cho responded only with a bow, without making any remarks. President Lee also greeted People Power Party Chairman Jang Dong-hyuk, saying, "Nice to meet you. I see you on TV often."
Speaker Cho Jung-sik said, "The 2027 budget bill, the largest in history, will contain painstaking efforts for the AI-driven transition and livelihood recovery. The National Assembly also feels a sense of responsibility." He added that both the ruling and opposition parties would do their best to conduct a thorough review and process the bill within the statutory deadline set by the Constitution.
However, during the private chat, People Power Party Chairman Jang Dong-hyuk reportedly pushed back, saying, "Even civil servants are bewildered by this kind of budget format that is not subject to National Assembly control," pointing out the problem that the Future Response Fund is not subject to legislative oversight. Despite the president's call for bipartisan cooperation, difficulties remain in budget negotiations between the ruling and opposition parties.
