[Anchor]

Kim Yong-beom, the senior presidential secretary for policy who has led the policy command center since the launch of the Lee Jae-myung administration, has abruptly resigned. He tendered his resignation just a day after Sunday's cabinet reshuffle involving economic ministries, and it was accepted today (the 1st). Attention is now focused on the background behind his sudden departure.

Reporter Kang Min-u has the details.

[Reporter]

This morning, the presidential office announced through an unscheduled press briefing that Senior Secretary Kim Yong-beom had offered to resign and that President Lee Jae-myung had accepted it.

[Kang Yu-jung / Senior Presidential Spokesperson: Senior Presidential Secretary for Policy Kim Yong-beom expressed his intention to resign yesterday, the 31st. In response, President Lee Jae-myung accepted his resignation today, September 1st.]

Kim is stepping down abruptly 15 months after taking office as the Lee Jae-myung administration's first senior policy secretary in June of last year, prompting various interpretations regarding the timing of his resignation.

Just two days ago when the medium-scale cabinet reshuffle was announced, ministers of economic ministries such as the Ministry of Finance and Economy and the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport were replaced, but there was no announcement regarding Secretary Kim, leading many to assume he was retaining his position.

Media interpretations poured in that day saying the "Kim Yong-beom policy command center" system had been solidified, while the opposition party flooded calls for his resignation, holding him responsible for the introduction of single-stock leverage ETFs and failures in real estate policy.

However, yesterday morning, a poll by Realmeter showed President Lee Jae-myung's approval rating falling into the 30% range for the first time. That same afternoon, Secretary Kim abruptly notified the National Assembly's Special Committee on Budget and Accounts that he would not attend a session he had previously scheduled to attend.

When his sudden resignation was announced today without even naming a successor, some analyses suggested it might be a disciplinary dismissal. The presidential office drew a line, stating that it was "an appointment to find vitality and drive in policy implementation."

A high-ranking presidential official explained to SBS that Secretary Kim told the President yesterday, "Now that the cabinet reshuffle has set a tone for government reform, there is a need to replace myself—whom the market views as the policy control tower—to inject fresh vitality into the presidential office," adding that President Lee accepted this.

As the Lee Jae-myung administration enters its second year, the explanation is that the personnel refresh is being carried out through voluntary resignation, though some analysts say whether it is "a prepared personnel move according to the President's vision" remains to be seen by watching the appointment of his successor.

(Video reporting: Jung Sang-bo, Ha Ryung / Video editing: Won Hyung-hee / Design: Hwang Se-yeon)

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[Anchor]

Senior Secretary Kim Yong-beom is credited with designing the Lee Jae-myung administration's core policies, ranging from South Korea-U.S. customs negotiations to three mega-projects. However, public sentiment deteriorated due to real estate issues, overlapping with accountability controversies over the introduction of leverage ETFs, ultimately leading him to step down after 15 months.

Next is reporter Kang Cheong-wan.

[Reporter]

Senior Presidential Secretary for Policy Kim Yong-beom is an elite bureaucrat who served as vice chairman of the Financial Services Commission and first vice minister of economy and finance.

When he framed the customs negotiations late last year using the "Mars card" and other measures,

[Kim Yong-beom / Senior Presidential Secretary for Policy (Oct. 29 of last year): We have agreed on the detailed contents of the customs negotiations with the United States.]

And when his popularity soared last June as the midwife for the "three mega-projects" and "Honam semiconductor,"

[Kim Yong-beom / Senior Presidential Secretary for Policy (June 24): There are concerns that we need to go out and look for a 'second cluster'...]

The status of the Lee Jae-myung administration's policy designer seemed solid.

However, the waves stirred up by the opposition's offensive since last year's parliamentary audit—

[Kim Eun-hee / People Power Party Lawmaker (Nov. 18 of last year): Would you tell your daughter to live in rental housing now?]

[Kim Yong-beom / Senior Presidential Secretary for Policy (Nov. 18 of last year): We haven't cut 'first-time homebuyer' or youth loans now. What did we cut?]

—surged last May when Secretary Kim mentioned his vision for a "citizen dividend" utilizing semiconductor excess tax revenues, sparking social controversy. The controversy spiked starting in July when the "single-stock leverage ETF," branded by the public as "Kim Yong-beom-style," was singled out as the main culprit behind stock market volatility, leading to accountability demands.

[Chung Chong-shik / People Power Party Floor Leader (July 20): The presidential office has infringed upon the property rights of the people. The President should dismiss Senior Policy Secretary Kim Yong-beom.]

In particular, remarks made by Secretary Kim in Brazil last July, to the effect that "everything is not because of leverage ETF" or that "individual investors' dynamism is the cause," were evaluated as having worsened the situation.

Last month, former leader Cho Kuk of the Rebuilding Korea Party, part of the wider ruling bloc, joined the call for punitive action, stating that "the failure of state-directed finance cannot be glossed over."

Regarding Secretary Kim, who leaves behind the basic blueprints for government policy, the presidential office emphasized policy implementation.

However, the People Power Party demanded a parliamentary investigation and a special counsel into the introduction of leverage ETFs, while the Rebuilding Korea Party claimed that Kim's resignation alone was not enough and demanded the departure of Financial Services Commission Chairman Lee Eok-won.

(Video reporting: Jung Sang-bo, Ha Ryung / Video editing: Oh Young-taek, Design: Lee Jong-jung)

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[Anchor]

Let's delve deeper into this with reporter Kang Min-u, who covers the presidential office.

Q. He was omitted from the cabinet reshuffle announcement?

[Reporter Kang Min-u: At the time of the cabinet reshuffle announcement the day before yesterday, Senior Policy Secretary Kim Yong-beom was not included, leading to a succession of interpretations that the policy stance was 'unchanged.' However, according to our reporting, yesterday morning—the day after the cabinet reshuffle announcement—internal meetings attended even by Secretary Kim included reports on reactions to the reshuffle, where interpretations linking Secretary Kim's retention to negative public sentiment about the reshuffle were reportedly mentioned. While the presidential office maintains that such discussions did not influence Secretary Kim's resignation, given that the timing of his resignation was also yesterday, some views suggest it is difficult to see them as unrelated. Sharing his farewell remarks with fellow policy office colleagues shortly before, Secretary Kim posted on social media, saying, 'I thought I took on responsibilities much greater than my abilities, but I am proud of the results we created.']

Q. Isn't this a dismissal or disciplinary action?

[Reporter Kang Min-u: The very reason why rumors of a 'dismissal' are circulating stems from the question of why, if he was going to be replaced anyway, there would be any reason to announce the cabinet reshuffle and the policy secretary's resignation separately with just a two-day gap. (Right.) When we spoke with people in the ruling bloc, there were skeptical and curious reactions: why announce it without even deciding on a successor? Is it a voluntary resignation in form but effectively disciplinary action? And was it done to take responsibility because public sentiment worsened after the reshuffle? However, explanations from within the presidential office also suggest that Secretary Kim had been meaning to step down anyway and that an occasion arose. The explanation is that with mega-project projects on track and the government's tax reform bill submitted to the cabinet meeting, Secretary Kim decided to resign viewing it as the conclusion of a chapter he was in charge of. In addition, analyses from multiple presidential officials indicate that a rebound in state governance approval ratings, which fell to the 30% range alongside rising accountability debates over ETFs within parts of the ruling party, ultimately led to his resignation.]

Q. The tax reform bill 'U-turn'... What does it mean?

[Reporter Kang Min-u: You could look at it that way. Real estate policies, including the tax reform bill, have been cited as factors behind the drop in the president's approval rating. Therefore, there is an aspect of revising them in a way that accommodates public sentiment and the demands of the ruling party. Furthermore, successive events—such as the replacement of the executor and the voluntary resignation of the designer on the government policy side, alongside concessions on core policies—are seen as a potential turning point for rebounding state governance approval ratings, with the first test expected to be the National Assembly personnel hearing sessions resulting from the cabinet reshuffle.]