Cheong Wa Dae Fires Back as Outrage Mounts Over "Robbing an Empty House"

[Anchor]

Cheong Wa Dae immediately issued a rebuttal. It criticized Supreme Court Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae's refusal to make a new recommendation as unconstitutional and an act that neutralizes the president's appointment authority. With President Lee Jae-myung currently away on an overseas tour, outraged reactions poured in, with some accusing the chief justice of "robbing an empty house."

Here is reporter Kang Cheong-wan.

[Reporter]

Immediately after Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae announced his position, Cheong Wa Dae issued statements twice, expressing regret and mounting a rebuttal.

First, it criticized the move, stating, "It is an unconstitutional perception that the chief justice's recommendation authority takes precedence over the president's appointment power," adding that it "neutralizes the appointment authority of the president elected by the people."

Regarding Chief Justice Cho's claim that the official document from August 28 requesting a new recommendation for a Supreme Court justice candidate lacked specific reasons and constitutional grounds, Cheong Wa Dae countered, "The president merely refrained from using expressions such as 'return' or 'rejection' out of respect for the chief justice, but clearly expressed the intent of rejection by not submitting the motion for appointment consent for candidate Son Bong-gi to the National Assembly." It added that the constitutional grounds for returning the recommendation were also clearly stated in the official document.

It also pressured Chief Justice Cho, emphasizing that "since the president rejected the recommended candidate, the chief justice must recommend a new candidate," and that "the chief justice must face the reality that a prolonged vacancy on the Supreme Court bench harms the public and must not leave the current situation unattended."

As the development took place while President Lee Jae-myung was away on an overseas trip, indignant reactions emerged from within Cheong Wa Dae, with officials asking, "Isn't this robbing an empty house?"

Cheong Wa Dae officials also unanimously noted that Chief Justice Cho made no mention of the matter during a tea meeting with President Lee yesterday (September 21), which took place immediately after the appointment ceremony for Supreme Court Justice Kim Sung-soo.

A senior Cheong Wa Dae official told SBS, "Chief Justice Cho's stance that he cannot find constitutional grounds or reasons makes no sense," adding, "Doing this ahead of the Chuseok holiday is a political act."

When asked about the possibility of petitioning the Constitutional Court for competence dispute adjudication, the official drew a line, saying, "The matter is so obvious, and it would be laughable for the president to request competence dispute adjudication."

(Video by Yoon Hyeong | Video Editing by Yoo Mi-ra | Graphics by Seo Hyun-joong)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.