The ruling Democratic Party of Korea and the opposition People Power Party traded sharp attacks over a push to impeach Supreme Court Chief Justice Jo Hee-de. The Democratic Party criticized the opposition's warning that President Lee Jae-myung could face impeachment, vowing to pursue the chief justice's accountability to the end. The People Power Party called the impeachment discussion an act of "constitutional destruction" aimed at preventing the resumption of Lee's trial and demanded it be halted.
Lee Yong-woo, spokesperson for the Democratic Party, took aim on the 17th in a written briefing at People Power Party floor leader Chung Jom-sig for raising the possibility of impeaching President Lee in connection with the party's discussion of impeaching the chief justice. The spokesperson called it "a truly irresponsible remark that drags in the president to issue threats when the chief justice's accountability is at issue."
He argued that "the questions the chief justice must answer are more than abundant — his refusal to resubmit Supreme Court justice nominations and the prolonged vacancies, suspicions of election interference raised by the remand ruling just before the presidential election, and controversies over falsely recorded business promotion expenses and improperly paid incentive payments."
"Floor leader Chung should not dress up his own political wishes as the will of the people. Threats aimed at the president cannot cover up the chief justice's accountability," the spokesperson said, warning that "the Democratic Party will not be swayed by the People Power Party's bluster and will pursue the chief justice's accountability to the end."
The People Power Party, by contrast, argued that the Democratic Party's push to impeach the chief justice is driven by an intent to block the president's trial.
Choi Soo-jin, chief floor spokesperson, said in a statement the same day that "the calculation is to forcibly suspend the chief justice from duty ahead of the regular judicial personnel reshuffle in February next year and thereby control the judiciary's personnel authority." She called it "an extralegal notion of blocking the resumption of President Lee's trial even at the cost of paralyzing the Supreme Court's functions."
She added that "this directly denies the principle of separation of powers set out in the Constitution, and it is an act of constitutional destruction that holds the entire national judicial system hostage solely to cover up one person's legal risk."
The spokesperson said that "tabling an impeachment motion against the head of the judiciary will be the signal flare announcing this administration's collapse," adding that "the moment the Democratic Party pushes the motion through, President Lee will be reduced to a dead duck who has completely lost his governing momentum."