Democratic Party of Korea leader Kim Min-seok said discussions on impeaching Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae have begun… As of 05:00 on the 17th, no impeachment motion had been introduced

From "reviewing all options" on 10/14 to "discussions have begun" on 10/16, the level of the remarks rose… People Power Party floor leader Jung Jeom-sik: "The moment they introduce it, the people will rise up and shout 'Impeach Lee Jae-myung'"

Kim Min-seok, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, said on the 16th regarding the issue of impeaching Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae, "On impeachment, broad demands have already been coming out, so you can see it as us having begun discussions with all methods and every path on the table." Leader Kim answered this way when asked about the issue of impeaching Chief Justice Cho while appearing that morning on the Democratic Party's YouTube broadcast 'Minti 07' (Yonhap News report on October 16 at 08:36). The Democratic Party's official X account announced the live broadcast of the program on the same day. The wording of the remarks is as reported by Yonhap News. https://x.com/TheMinjoo_Kr/status/2110847892571201634

The remarks were an expression one step further than two days earlier. At the Supreme Council meeting on the 14th, Leader Kim had said to Chief Justice Cho, "The line of patience is not infinite either," and said, "We are substantively reviewing all options." The Democratic Party posted on its official account that day the sentence "The people are watching the Chief Justice's conduct" as the gist of the Supreme Council meeting. The word that was "review" on the 14th changed to "discussions have begun" on the 16th. The party leadership has disclosed no schedule for introducing an impeachment motion and no party position. https://x.com/TheMinjoo_Kr/status/2110190918309707975

Leader Kim also said on the same broadcast, "Up to a certain point, we thought it was good not to even bring up the 'ㅌ' of impeachment and to give the people sufficient explanation and a process of understanding, and we have proceeded that way," and said, "Now we are comprehensively organizing the reasons why 'he has no choice but to resign.'" Rep. Kim Gi-pyo of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee, who appeared on the same broadcast, said, "The grounds for impeachment are more than overflowing," and said, "We must impeach him unconditionally now, in this phase." Rep. Park Gyun-taek said, "Denying the constitutional provision on the President's appointment power and violating the Act on Testimony and Appraisal before the National Assembly by refusing to take the witness oath at the parliamentary inspection can fully be grounds for impeachment." The grounds for impeachment raised by the two lawmakers are the lawmakers' claims, and are not facts judged by the Constitutional Court or a court.

The People Power Party stated its position at a parliamentary inspection countermeasures meeting on the morning of the same day. Floor leader Jung Jeom-sik said, "If the Democratic Party is confident, let them try impeaching Chief Justice Cho," and said, "The moment they introduce an impeachment bill, the people will rise up and shout 'Impeach Lee Jae-myung.'" Leader Jang Dong-hyeok posted on his own X account on the same day a post saying the aim was to suspend Chief Justice Cho's duties before the regular court personnel appointments in February next year to block his exercise of personnel authority. This is Leader Jang's claim; the Democratic Party had issued no separate position on it as of 05:00 on the 17th. https://x.com/jangdonghyeok9/status/2110914996687573083

Floor leader Jung said of Cho Won-cheol, Minister of Government Legislation, saying at the previous day's Legislation and Judiciary Committee parliamentary inspection that the Chief Justice's authority to recommend Supreme Court justices is "in a sense a meaning of recommendation and proposal," that he "grotesquely distorted the Constitution." He also claimed, "What the President is doing now is not simply a request for re-recommendation but forcing the recommendation of Judge Kim Min-gi." Whether the presidential office demanded the recommendation of a specific candidate has not been confirmed by an official announcement from the presidential office. Yonhap News reported on September 22 that the presidential office "hinted that it wanted one of the remaining candidates, excluding Senior Judge Son among the 4 people previously recommended, to be re-recommended." Rep. Joo Jin-woo of the same party, a member of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee, wrote on Facebook, "If Chief Justice Cho is impeached, the Supreme Court will be paralyzed and livelihood-related rulings will also come to a full stop." The Democratic Party did not issue a separate position on this (as of 05:00 on the 17th).

The starting point was one Supreme Court justice seat

The starting point of the conflict is one Supreme Court justice seat. After former Supreme Court Justice Roh Tae-ak retired on March 3, his successor seat has been vacant. The Supreme Court Justice Candidate Recommendation Committee recommended 4 people as successor candidates on January 21: Seoul High Court Senior Judges Kim Min-gi and Park Soon-young, Seoul High Court Senior Judge Yoon Sung-sik, and Daegu District Court Senior Judge Son Bong-gi (Yonhap News report on September 22).

Chief Justice Cho recommended Senior Judge Son Bong-gi as a Supreme Court justice candidate on August 18. Ten days later, on August 28, the presidential office requested a re-recommendation, saying it was a "unilateral written recommendation without substantive consultation." Chief Justice Cho said to reporters on September 22, "The August 28 'request for re-recommendation of a Supreme Court justice candidate' does not state the specific reasons for requesting a re-recommendation or its constitutional basis," and said, "I state that I cannot comply with the request for re-recommendation." The presidential office stated on the same day, "It is a perception that the Chief Justice's recommendation authority takes precedence over the President's appointment power, which violates the Constitution of the Republic of Korea."

Counts of the vacancy period differ. Yonhap News wrote on September 22 that it had been "vacant for more than 200 days," and Democratic Party Rep. Lee Seong-yoon said at the Ministry of Government Legislation parliamentary inspection on October 15, "He has not recommended a Supreme Court justice for the 225th day." As the starting dates differ from each other, this article writes only the date (retirement on March 3).