[Anchor]

Writer Yu Si-min, a prominent pundit close to the broader ruling camp, has unleashed harsh criticism against President Lee Jae-myung and the ruling party. The ruling camp reacted with fury, saying his remarks crossed the line.

Reporter Kim Kwan-jin has the details.

[Reporter]

Writer Yu Si-min, who has lobbed contentious topics into the broader ruling camp starting with the "ABC Theory" in March, followed by the "Reconstruction Theory" and the "Certain Defeat Theory," launched a direct and fierce offensive against President Lee Jae-myung this time.

[Yu Si-min / Writer (Last night, YouTube channel 'Jang In-soo's Journalist'): "Over the past year, the attitude shown by the president is that of a ruler, and specifically, that of an arrogant ruler, in my view."]óa

Yu claimed that he had trusted President Lee when Lee said he needed authority rather than power to become an instrument of history, but that he either misjudged the man or Lee changed after grabbing power.

He also criticized the Democratic Party, citing a former presidential secretary embroiled in the "text message job lobbying" controversy as an example, arguing that President Lee seeks to place the Democratic Party under his own influence.

[Yu Si-min / Writer (Last night, YouTube channel 'Jang In-soo's Journalist'): "The moment they resign and walk out, they are made party spokespersons and given strategic nominations in local elections. A party that does that is a 'lost party'."]

The Democratic Party's national convention was also brought under fire.

[Yu Si-min / Writer (Last night, YouTube channel 'Jang In-soo's Journalist'): "For the president to 'pick' and drop in a party leader for the ruling party to have them elected is heading toward a monarchy or aristocracy."]

Commenting on the election of three pro-Presidential candidates in the Supreme Council race and the defeat of President Lee's closest confidant, he remarked, "The Democratic Party is much more admirable than I thought."

The ruling camp poured out scathing criticisms, saying Yu had gone far beyond the acceptable line.

Five-term lawmaker Park Jie-won lashed out, saying, "If you want to shake the president and help the forces of rebellion seize power, come out of the closet and walk that path," while pro-Lee freshman lawmaker Jung Jin-wook directly attacked him, calling him "a venomous prophet of doom, Yu Si-min is no writer, but a shaman."

Minister of Planning and Budget Park Hong-keun wrote on social media, "How can you spit in a well just because you don't like the one we dug together?"

While Democratic Party leader Kim Min-seok is kicking off efforts to unite the broader ruling camp by launching internal party organizations, the internal conflict within the broader ruling camp is only growing deeper in the wake of the controversy over Yu's remarks.

(Camera and video reporting: Oh Young-chun, Kim Yong-woo | Video editing: Oh Young-taek | Design: Hwang Se-yeon)