Democratic Party spokesperson Lee Ji-eun resigns over remarks comparing President Lee to Yoon

Lee Ji-eun, a spokesperson for the Democratic Party of Korea, stepped down Wednesday after remarks comparing President Lee Jae Myung to former President Yoon Suk Yeol sparked controversy.

In a social media post that day, Lee said she had concluded she "must not continue serving as spokesperson of the ruling party" if her ability to communicate fell short of conveying her true intentions to the public. "I will now set down this heavy burden, return to being an ordinary party member, and commit to deeper learning and reflection," she wrote.

She added that she "need not have invoked the name Yoon Suk Yeol as a point of comparison" and acknowledged that, regardless of her intent, her failure to communicate her meaning clearly had placed a burden on the party. "That in itself is an admission of my inadequacy as a spokesperson," she said.

The controversy stemmed from an appearance Monday on the YouTube program "Park Si-young TV," in which Lee said: "I have been in politics since the Yoon Suk Yeol era. Watching Yoon, I saw how he handpicked a party leader and drew enormous criticism for it — and I found myself wondering whether President Lee is now doing the same thing."

Lee later clarified that her remarks were meant to express the opposite. "I had firm confidence that the kind of old-style politics we so fiercely criticized in the previous administration — handpicking a party leader, backroom appointments — could never happen under our government," she said. "So what I was trying to say was: 'We condemned Yoon Suk Yeol for exactly this — surely our president would not do the same thing. That is unthinkable.'"

She also pushed back against characterizations of President Lee's conduct as partisan maneuvering. "Framing the president's broad-mindedness and sincerity as a factional 'handpicking' is precisely the kind of claim that puts the president in danger," she said, while conceding that "my language lacked sufficient refinement."

"It was an honor to serve as a spokesperson for the Democratic Party, and at the same time I always felt a deep sense of responsibility," she said, and went on to say she would return to the ranks of ordinary party membership to learn and reflect more deeply.

서인영 “‘몇개월 사나 보자’ 악플에 상처”…‘재혼’ 앞두고 심경 고백

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