Cho Guk Takes Direct Aim at President and Democratic Party Daily…Effectively Declaring 'Opposition Stance'

The Cho Guk Innovation Party is increasingly taking on the appearance of an opposition party, with successive criticism of the Lee Jae-myeong administration and the Democratic Party. This is being interpreted as an effort to strengthen its autonomy and negotiating power ahead of discussions on alliance and merger with the Democratic Party.

Cho Guk, director of the Innovation Policy Research Institute of the Cho Guk Innovation Party, criticized the government's revised comprehensive property tax plan on the 2nd, saying the government and Democratic Party "abandoned taxation principles out of fear of the general election" and "protected the interests of the top 1%."

The previous day, regarding President Lee Jae-myeong's case related to the Public Official Election Act, he said there was "a very high possibility of a guilty verdict in the second trial after his term," and warned that if the Democratic Party pursued withdrawal of appeal, they would "face political and legal disaster." This marked the first time he directly targeted the president's judicial issues beyond policy.

Tensions between the two parties have accumulated since the Pyeongtaek by-election in June. When former lawmaker Kim Yong-nam, who was dubbed the "Cho Guk sniper," was strategically nominated by the Democratic Party to the district where Cho ran, opinion within the party was divided. Some argued that the Democratic Party should not nominate a candidate, citing concerns about fragmentation of conservative votes. Ultimately, with the unity deal falling apart, both candidates lost, deepening the emotional rift.

Yet when the Democratic Party recently appointed former lawmaker Kim to the position of permanent vice chair of the Policy Committee, the Cho Guk Innovation Party pushed back, saying he was appointed "brazenly." Analysts view Cho's successive criticism as an intention to position the party as an independent check force rather than a friendly force to be absorbed by the Democratic Party.

A political insider said, "The distrust that has accumulated since the Pyeongtaek nomination has resurfaced through the appointment of party officials," adding "while the Cho Guk Innovation Party can raise its value before integration, if successive offensives directly targeting the president continue, it may invite isolation within the conservative bloc."

Meanwhile, Cho Guk previously stated about his redevelopment apartment in Bangedong, Seocho-gu, Seoul, "I cannot find a particular reason to sell it," which will likely lead to inevitable controversy over the consistency of his real estate offensive.

전시언 기자 yourside@news-s.kr