Lee’s chief of staff says he will step down in Dec. after budget bill, FTA passesCheong Wa Dae was scrambling to deal with mounting pressure over last week’s defeat in the mayoral by-election, with its chief of staff saying he will quit after the National Assembly passes the Korea-U.S. free trade agreement bill and next year’s budget bill.The presidential office is planning an organizational shake-up, officials said Monday, as it has often done after losing elections.Dong-a Ilbo, a local newspap

Despite a flurry of meetings on Monday, rival political parties failed to move forward a long-pending motion to ratify the Korea-U.S Free Trade Agreement. Opposition lawmakers physically obstructed a session of a parliamentary committee on foreign trade, where the FTA bill was scheduled to be handled. “I am not going to push anymore to hold a session today, causing a physical clash between members,” Rep. Nam Kyung-pil of the ruling Grand National Party, the committee’s chair, said outside the me

Scuffle likely Monday as parties fail to bridge gap on investor-state disputesRival political parties braced for physical clashes over whether to ratify the free trade agreement with the U.S., signed in 2007 and revised late last year, after failing to narrow differences Sunday on the contentious clauses on investor-state disputes.Floor leaders Hwang Woo-yea of the ruling Grand National Party and Kim Jin-pyo of the main opposition Democratic Party held a closed-door luncheon meeting Sunday in wh

Opposition DP to hold convention by year-end to select new leaderFollowing Na Kyung-won’s loss to liberal civic activist Park Won-soon in last week’s Seoul mayoral race, the ruling Grand National Party faces mounting calls for reform ahead of general and presidential elections next year.Na, the GNP nominee, lost to Park in 41 out of 48 constituencies in the capital, including her own constituency Jung-gu, causing a sense of emergency in the party.Most swing voters below the age of 50 preferred

GNP, Cheong Wa Dae plan targeted pitch for voters under 50The conservative ruling Grand National Party, stung by a sharp fall in support among younger voters, continued agonizing Friday over how to reform itself. The party’s leaders, including chairman Hong Joon-pyo, looked set to stay on and lead the reform measures. “We should take the initiative and push for a complete overhaul of the party,” Rep. Hong told members of the party’s top decision-making Supreme Council on Thursday evening.  Some

Former police chief to head Presidential Security ServicePresident Lee Myung-bak on Thursday named the president of a state-funded trade promotion agency as the new knowledge economy minister and a former police chief as head of the presidential security service.Hong Suk-woo, who took the helm of the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency in June, was tapped to lead the Ministry of Knowledge Economy, Lee’s spokesman Park Jeong-ha said. Hong will succeed Choi Joong-kyung who offered to resign la

Parties gauge impact of local by-elections, seek remedies to their problemsThe triumph of civic activist Park Won-soon in the Seoul mayoral by-election heralds a major shift in the country’s political landscape as the rival parties strive to revamp to regain public trust.Political experts say the outcome of Wednesday’s showdown clearly reflected widespread public disenchantment with established politicians for following their own interests rather than those of citizens.Each political party is no

Social networking services emerged as the new trend in raising turnout during the Oct. 26 by-elections, as SNS users sent short messages encouraging one another to cast their ballots and pick the best candidate.They posted self-portrait shots photographed at polling stations while celebrities joked they would urge their fans and others to cast votes. No doubt, social network services led by Twitter have secured a place as one of the strongest campaign tools among the younger generation, who cann