"Difficult to Compromise" vs. "Unpleasant and Violent"... Ruling Party Figures Clash Just 10 Days After Convention

[Anchor]

At a Democratic Party workshop held to promote party unity ahead of the regular September session of the National Assembly, former leader Chung Cheong-rae expressed frustration over remarks made by Party Leader Kim Min-seok. After Leader Kim publicly stated that it was difficult to compromise with former leader Chung regarding differences in the party's platform, Chung pushed back directly, calling the remarks unpleasant and violent.

Reporter Park Jae-yeon has the details.

[Reporter]

At the Democratic Party lawmakers' workshop held in Incheon today.

Party Leader Kim Min-seok presented a plaque of appreciation to former leader Chung Cheong-rae, who had been his competitor in the August 17 party convention.

However, while explaining the party's political direction, Leader Kim brought up a conversation he had with former leader Chung at the National Assembly plenary hall yesterday, addressing their differing stances.

[Kim Min-seok / Leader, Democratic Party : Our former leader Chung Cheong-rae is a prominent believer in the theory that "there is no center." Well, since this is simply his own argument, it is neither a matter of good versus evil nor a subject for evaluation.]

Expressing confidence that President Lee Jae-myung would share a similar view regarding his own "expansion to centrist-conservative politics" stance, Kim lamented that it was difficult to reach a compromise with former leader Chung's "prioritizing progressive unity" stance.

[Kim Min-seok / Leader, Democratic Party : Because this is a difference in our respective judgments, we reached a tentative conclusion that it is somewhat difficult to compromise between us.]

Three hours after Leader Kim mentioned former leader Chung by name seven times, Chung posted a lengthy rebuttal on social media.

He sharpens his criticism by stating that he only had a one-to-two-minute conversation with Leader Kim yesterday, and that Leader Kim using the real name of his opponent from the recent party convention simply to say what he wanted to say was "violent."

He also explained that his previous remark that "there is no center" meant that the center would show support only when the ruling party acts like a ruling party and the opposition party acts like an opposition party, while launching a barrage of sharp words targeting Leader Kim, such as unpleasant, insulting, and rude.

In response, Leader Kim wrote on social media that he also respects former leader Chung's remarks and arguments, while offering an apology for causing discomfort and asking for his understanding.

As the current and former party leaders clashed head-on just 10 days after the party convention, despite the workshop being held under the banner of unity, the mood within the party has been shaken.

(Video reporting: Oh Young-chun, Shin Dong-hwan | Video editing: Jang Hyun-ki)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.