Trump has executed his usual playbook of making an extreme demand and then settling on what he really wanted and everyone claims he backed down:
U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday lowered “reciprocal” tariffs on South Korea and other trading partners to 10 percent in what he called a pause that will last for 90 days, while increasing duties on China to 125 percent following China’s retaliatory move.
In a social media post, Trump made the announcement as reciprocal tariffs went into effect on the day, with dozens of countries striving to negotiate deals over new levies. Last week, his administration unveiled 25 percent tariffs on South Korea, 24 percent on Japan and 20 percent on the European Union, to name a few.
You can read more at the link.
Anyone surprised by this news that Lee Jae-myung now that he is favored to win the Presidency is now no longer interested in limiting Presidential powers?:
The People Power Party on Monday backed National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-shik’s proposal to hold a referendum on amending the Constitution to reduce the president’s power on the same day as the early presidential election, highly likely slated for June 3.
Rep. Kwon Young-se, the People Power party’s leader, said the public consensus on reforming the country’s power structure was ripe in the wake of the impeachment crisis.
“We have witnessed the risks of a president having all the powers of the state,” Kwon said, alluding to former President Yoon Suk Yeol’s imposition of martial law in December last year.
But Rep. Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party chair remains convinced that the Yoon’s “insurrection” is still ongoing, and countering it should take priority.
Lee, who has a clear lead in the polls for to be the next president, said that while amending the Constitution and developing democracy were important, “putting an end to Yoon Suk Yeol’s insurrection should come first.”
“I think we all recognize the necessity of having a revised Constitution. But right now, nothing takes precedence over the task of stopping Yoon’s bid to destroy democracy,” Lee said.
This has to be the lamest excuse that Lee could come up with because Yoon has had no power for months and was officially removed from office last week. There is no more Yoon to oppose.
We all know the real reason that Lee now is uninterested in limitiing Presidential powers now that Yoon is gone:
A People Power Party lawmaker on the Assembly’s Legislation and Judiciary Committee, the Democratic Party, thinking it has a better chance at winning the coming election, might be less willing to accept a constitutional amendment that would take away some of the president’s powers.
“Lee Jae-myung himself has spoken on the need for constitutional reform several times in the past. But now with the presidency in sight, he would be less willing to embrace a reform plan that could limit his powers if he is elected,” he said.
You can read more at the link.
I was never a big fan of moving the Presidential office to Yongsan and it appears who ever the new Korean President ends up being, it will move yet again:
Following the removal of President Yoon Suk Yeol from office, many are wondering if the next administration might relocate the presidential office, currently located in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, back to the previous location of Cheong Wa Dae, also known as the Blue House, or to a new site.
“Regardless of which party takes power, I think the majority of the public is unlikely to agree with the presidential office remaining in Yongsan in the long term,” said Rep. Kim Min-seok, a senior leader of the liberal Democratic Party of Korea, appearing on a radio program Tuesday.
He added that the ousted Yoon had not allowed sufficient public discussion when he moved the top office out of Cheong Wa Dae to Yongsan.
You can read more at the link, but I believe they should just move it back to Cheongwadae. It is a beautiful complex in the heart of Seoul, but would need to have a major security scan done since it has been open to the public for so long. When it opened to the public I made sure to go and visit Cheongwadae because I figured the Presidential office would eventually move back there. It was pretty cool to be able to mostly freely walk around an area that had for the longest time been closed to the public. I will need to post pictures of the visit when I get a chance.
It sounds like this really was a good phone call considering the positive spin President Trump has put on it:
U.S. President Donald Trump said Tuesday he and South Korea’s acting President Han Duck-soo discussed Seoul’s payment for the United States’ “big time” military protection of the Asian ally as they held their first phone call since Trump took office in January.
In a social media post, he said he had a “great” call with Han, during which they touched on a range of issues, including South Korea’s “tremendous and unsustainable” trade surplus with the U.S., the purchase of U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) and bilateral shipbuilding cooperation.
Their conversation came four days after South Korea’s Constitutional Court removed President Yoon Suk Yeol from office over his short-lived martial law imposition in December.
“I just had a great call with the Acting President of South Korea. We talked about their tremendous and unsustainable Surplus, Tariffs, Shipbuilding, large scale purchase of U.S. LNG, their joint venture in an Alaska Pipeline, and payment for the big time Military Protection we provide to South Korea,” he wrote on Truth Social.
“They began these Military payments during my first term, Billions of Dollars, but Sleepy Joe Biden, for reasons unknown, terminated the deal. That was a shocker to all! In any event, we have the confines and probability of a great DEAL for both countries.”
Trump added that South Korea’s “top” team is on a plane heading to the U.S. for negotiations.
“Things are looking good,” he said. “We are likewise dealing with many other countries, all of whom want to make a deal with the United States.”
You can read more at the link, but the problem Trump will need to deal with is that if an agreement is reached with the interim government, the new government in 60 days could change it all.
Appeasement of North Korea is what one analyst expects and the Korean left’s track record on this issue shows this will likely come true:
Sung-Yoon Lee, a fellow at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, D.C., said Yoon’s removal “virtually enthrones” Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung as the likely next president. Lee, who has not formally announced a run for the presidency, faced Yoon in the 2022 election.
In December, he famously scaled a wall at the National Assembly to block Yoon’s martial law decree. Yoon defended his decision, accusing the Democrats of obstructing legislation and conducting politically motivated investigations of government appointees. “If Lee Jae-myung or another [Democratic Party] politician takes power, we can anticipate big changes — mostly for the worse for South Korea’s national security and its alliance with the U.S., based on the ignoble record on North Korea policy …,” Sung-Yoon Lee told Stars and Stripes by email Friday. (…..)
“Politicians are prone to switching colors on various issues,” Sung-Yoon Lee said. “But Lee Jae-myung and his fellow lawmakers are united and unswerving when it comes to appeasing Kim …”
You can read more at the link.
