Short Interview with the Author: ⑥ "Respect the National Assembly from the Perspective of Cooperation" (Choi Jun-young)

YouTube Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eIp0Xfcuwg8

The East Asia Institute (EAI) has launched the project <Conditions for the Success of the 20th President>, targeting presidential candidates, their campaign teams, politicians, media, and influencers, in anticipation of the 20th presidential election scheduled for March 9, 2022. Following a working paper series, a book has been published. The nine researchers summarize the conditions for success in the roles of head of the executive branch, politics of harmony and coexistence, and balanced national development and communication as 'decentralization, integration, and coexistence.' We are releasing a short interview with the author along with the web publication of the working paper series, which aims to present the conditions for the success of the next president by analyzing the failures of past presidents.

Chapter 6, "Respect the National Assembly from the Perspective of Cooperation" – Choi Jun-young (Inha University)

Read the Working Paper

■ Author: Choi Jun-young_ Professor of Political Science and International Relations at Inha University. He holds a Ph.D. in Political Science from Florida State University. He has served as the president of the Korean Political Science Association and the Korean Association for American Studies. His main research areas include legislatures, elections, and American politics. His major publications include "Win at All Costs, But Don't Fight: The Dual Nature of Korean Voters' Attitudes Toward Representative Democracy" (Korean Political Science Review, 2019, co-authored), "Testing legislative shirking in a new setting: the case of lame duck sessions in the Korean National Assembly" (Japanese Journal of Political Science, 2019, co-authored), "Conflict and Gridlock in Korean Representative Democracy: Whose Responsibility and What to Do?" (Korean Political Science Review, 2018), and "Cognitive and partisan mobilization in new democracies: The case of South Korea" (Party Politics, 2017, co-authored).

Video Transcript

If you ask about the most serious problem in the relationship between the president and the National Assembly, the core of the issue is that the president views the National Assembly as a subordinate. The National Assembly should be considered the 'heart' of national governance in operating a democracy. However, for a long time, past presidents in Korea have strongly tended to view the National Assembly as a subordinate entity that obeys their commands. This perception by the president has distorted the relationship between the president and the National Assembly, ultimately leading to policy failures and societal division. I believe two conditions are necessary for a president to succeed.

First, the president needs to soberly recognize the significant shift in the era where the status of the National Assembly as a legislative body has become much more prominent than in the past. The era when the president was the main player and the National Assembly was merely a minor supporting role is long gone. If one wishes to succeed, they must humble themselves and elevate the National Assembly. One must not be an authoritarian figure living in the past or in an undemocratic era. Second, the president must recognize that a proper policy-making process is a prerequisite for achieving proper policy outcomes.

A proper policy-making process, in my view, means decisions made through consensus between the ruling and opposition parties. It is necessary to form a relationship of trust between the ruling and opposition parties and to create a policy-making process based on dialogue and compromise rather than conflict and confrontation. Ultimately, the condition for a president's success lies in establishing a cooperative relationship between the president and the National Assembly. To achieve this cooperative relationship, the president needs to cultivate four major mindsets.

First, please keep in mind that there is no policy without politics. I believe that few past presidents since democratization have made active political efforts to gain the support of the National Assembly. Because politics has been neglected, policy failures have inevitably occurred. Therefore, the president should meet with many lawmakers, regardless of party affiliation. While formal meetings are important, informal meetings are also crucial.

Through such informal meetings, trust can be built, and this trust can serve as a vital fuel for negotiation and compromise between the ruling and opposition parties. Therefore, I hope more such political efforts will be made. Furthermore, another important aspect in building trust between the ruling and opposition parties is to absolutely avoid judging politics from a perspective of good versus evil. If politics is viewed through the lens of good versus evil, there is a high probability of forming an adversarial relationship characterized by 'I am right, and you are wrong.' In such a situation, cooperation is impossible.

I believe that politics transcends good and evil. I hope people will adopt the mindset that politics is beyond good and evil. In a democracy, it is not about determining what is right and what is wrong among the conflicts currently occurring. Democracy should focus on how to reconcile and compromise among competing conflicts to find solutions. In that context, judging politics from a perspective of good versus evil must be refrained from.

The second mindset is that mobilizing the public yields more harm than good. The politics of mobilization, and nowadays the politics of fandom, often lead to societal division by exacerbating conflict among the public. Rather than mobilizing the public and having them directly engage in conflict, it is crucial to address societal issues within the public sphere of the National Assembly. Next, the third mindset for the president...

...when interacting with the National Assembly, especially regarding decisions made by the majority party, the president should choose a direction that aligns with the majority party's stance. There have been frequent conflicts and parliamentary disruptions due to inconsistencies between the National Assembly's decision-making process and the president's actions. However, the president needs to respect the National Assembly's decision-making process based on consensus and foster a political culture of cooperation. Finally, I would like to add one more point: when negotiating with the opposition party, the president should, as much as possible, conduct these negotiations in private.

This is because it can increase the possibility of reaching an agreement between the ruling and opposition parties. Given the severe political polarization in Korea, public disclosure of negotiation processes can lead to numerous problems. Lawmakers participating in negotiations are aware that the public is watching these processes. When negotiations are conducted publicly, they know that many citizens are observing, especially those with extreme partisan and ideological stances.

Negotiations inherently involve compromise, which may require abandoning some of one's party's interests or ideological principles. However, if citizens with strong partisan and ideological leanings are observing, they will inevitably criticize such actions as betraying principles and being traitors. This is not beneficial for the lawmakers. Ultimately, to be a successful president, one must adopt an attitude of discussing and deciding in conjunction with the National Assembly.

You likely wish to be remembered in history like King Sejong. I would like you to remember just one thing. One of the most frequently appearing words in the Annals of King Sejong is 'yeui' (與議), which means discussing together and deliberating. Despite being a monarchy, King Sejong demonstrated a willingness to discuss and decide on various policy matters with his officials. Such practices existed even in a monarchy. In a democracy, the president must now discuss and decide in conjunction with the National Assembly. Only when such actions occur can Korea produce a successful president.