President Yoon's second impeachment bill...How many votes will be cast for the people's power?

■ Host: Kim Sun-young Anchor
■ Starring: Kim Ki-heung, former deputy spokesperson for the president's office, Jang Hyun-joo, vice chairman of the Democratic Party of Korea's legal committee

* The text below may differ from the actual broadcast content, so please check the broadcast for more accurate information. Please specify [YTN News Special] when quoting.

[Anchor]
The political atmosphere ahead of the vote. I'll continue to talk with the two of you. I'm talking with Kim Ki-heung, a former deputy spokesman for the president's office, and Jang Hyun-joo, vice chairman of the Democratic Party of Korea's legal committee. Spokesperson Kim Ki-heung is here, but there was a short break in the parliamentary assembly a while ago, and after listening to lawmakers, Cho Kyung-tae predicted that there would be more votes for his conviction than expected.

[Kim Gi-heung]
In my view, the possibility of passing this time has increased in the media, whether it is the ruling party or the opposition party, isn't there a lot of predictions like that? I think there will be various opinions at the general meeting. As for today's situation, I think there is a growing possibility that there are more voices for approval than before.

In that respect, isn't lawmaker Cho Kyung-tae very strong in his opinion on this issue? He talks about the president to the extent that he says Mr. Yoon Suk Yeol, so I think he has an intention to introduce the stories of those who strengthen his position. However, as for the autonomous voting part, I think there is some consensus on the part entering the plenary session.

We need to see if it will be a party theory or whether it will be a way to vote for the country or the people according to their conscience, as each lawmaker is a constitutional institution in general.

[Anchor]
In the case of Rep. Ko Dong-jin, I saw that all opinions are being gathered in the direction of going in, and the weight is being put on it. Floor leader Kwon Sung-dong said, "It is not right to participate in the vote on the premise that it is his personal opinion. I heard that he expressed his opinion. There were also predictions that if everyone entered the plenary session, more votes could be approved than originally expected by the media.

[Jang Hyun-joo]
Once the People's Power lawmakers come to the polls, expectations are high that more votes can be cast in favor. I repeat, because it is an anonymous vote, it is actually a party within the People's Power Party that decides to reject it. It's a structure where you can vote for it when you go in. That's why the party's theory itself is not very meaningful.

Once we come to the polls through autonomous voting, I hope that the members of the People's Power will realize that they are constitutional institutions, regardless of their partisan interests, and that they will fulfill their historical responsibilities and calling.

[Anchor]
In any case, the official party line is still a no-no. Two-thirds of lawmakers need to agree to change this party theory. What do you think is the possibility of changing the party line?

[Kim Gi-heung]
In order to change the party's theory, lawmakers need to agree on two-thirds, but I don't know if I can go through such a process. If so, it can make a rupture sound with various changes or no, so I think it will be a form of self-voting in the plenary session hall after doing it as soon as time goes out.

[Anchor]
We don't have much time left, so will we officially change our party line or will we only participate in the vote? Since the general meeting of the lawmakers is continuing, we will deliver it as soon as the breaking news comes in. President Yoon Suk Yeol will not go to the presidential office today and watch the vote at his official residence. What happens if it's approved? Are you staying in your official residence?

[Jang Hyun-joo]
I'm sure we will. If the impeachment bill is voted on and passed by the National Assembly today, the president's duties will be suspended immediately. And just because the impeachment bill passed by the National Assembly does not mean that it is impeached in itself, but it goes to the Constitutional Court. The Constitutional Court will begin the impeachment proceedings. Of course, the president's duties are suspended during that period, so it is transferred to the acting system.

As a president, it is not possible to go to work or exercise authority in the presidential office, so it is likely that it will lead to a procedure in which he will stay in his official residence to prepare for the impeachment trial process and to legally respond to the ongoing investigation into civil war by investigative agencies.

[Anchor]
Ahead of the impeachment vote, we will show you the screen in real time what the situation is like at the pro-impeachment rally. Pro-Impeachment Rally In Yeouido, Seoul, and the anti-impeachment rally in Gwanghwamun, Seoul. There are more than two hours left until the vote, but you can see that a large crowd is gathered. Depending on the outcome of today's impeachment vote, the atmosphere of the rally is expected to change considerably.

Ahead of today's impeachment vote, Lee Jae-myung, chairman of the main opposition Democratic Party, said, "We must remember that absenteeism from impeachment is a duty that we should take forever," and asked him to vote in favor of the people's power. This is the situation where I appealed. In terms of the power of the people, the general meeting of lawmakers is continuing now, and it is highly likely to go to autonomous voting. These opinions are now being delivered.

Ahead of the vote, the number of pros and cons are gathering one after another. After the results of the vote, the atmosphere is expected to change quite a bit. We'll continue to show you how we're changing every moment on the set.

In the case of President Yoon Suk Yeol, the results of the vote are expected to be seen at his official residence, but both the Senior Civil Servant Corruption Investigations Unit and the police are discussing the possibility of emergency arrest. What happens if I get arrested in an emergency? [Kim Ki-heung] As far as I know, after an emergency arrest, a warrant is requested within 48 hours. If so, there is also a requirement for an emergency arrest.

When there is a possibility of committing a serious crime of more than three years of death, life imprisonment, or long-term imprisonment. When the prosecution arrested former Minister Kim Yong-hyun, didn't you charge him with conspiracy to commit rebellion? And since I talked about the peak of the so-called civil war, I think it is undeniable that the blade of the prosecution, the prosecution, the police, and the Senior Civil Servant Corruption Investigations Unit is facing the president in this regard.

Isn't the emergency arrest requirement the possibility of committing a serious crime mentioned earlier, the destruction of evidence, and then the fear of escaping? In this regard, if you judge that there is a possibility of an emergency arrest due to concerns about the destruction of evidence, don't you think the most important thing after that is whether it is issued through a substantive examination when applying for a warrant within 48 hours?

Whether it's the prosecution or the police, they applied for a warrant at the Senior Civil Servant Corruption Investigations Unit, but it wasn't issued for this part, and then if it's dismissed through a warrant review, everything they thought was in a state of disarray. In my view, it is a little competitive to say that at the police or the airborne office.

[Anchor]
In fact, it seems unlikely that it will be carried out in a few days, is this how you see it?

[Kim Gi-heung]
Of course, what will happen to today's impeachment, because if this impeachment is passed, can't we ignore the fact that impeachment has some political toll on the people before the Constitutional Court makes any legal judgment? In that sense, I think there could be such an attempt early next week if impeachment is passed because investigative agencies are also working hard to secure new recruits to hold legal responsibility before holding such an atmosphere and political responsibility.

[Jang Hyun-joo]
There have been media reports that investigative agencies have begun reviewing the requirements for emergency arrest against the incumbent president. However, in order to arrest a person, the principle is arrest by warrant. So, it is a principle to obtain an arrest warrant from the court and execute the warrant to arrest him.

In the case of an emergency arrest, spokesman Kim said earlier, but in the end, urgency is essential. When you get a warrant, you have to miss this person or have urgent situations, but if the investigation agency moves forward with an emergency arrest, the possibility of a physical conflict with the presidential security service is realistically expected.

[Anchor]
There was also a conflict during the raid.

[Jang Hyun-joo]
That's right. And that's what happened during the raid, and getting the president's recruits under emergency arrest because it's urgent without a warrant is also a real possibility of a major physical conflict. That's why I think I'll be considering arresting by obtaining an arrest warrant from an investigative agency.

If this happens, it is expected that the court will issue a warrant and go to execute the warrant, so it will be able to lower concerns about the physical conflict.

[Anchor]
Anyway, as the prosecution and police speed up the investigation, statements from officials are pouring in. In the National Assembly, testimonies on the situation of martial law are being made through questions on pending issues at the standing committee level. YouTuber Kim Eo-jun, who attended the science and defense session, insisted on this. Let's hear what you're talking about.

[Kim Eo Jun/ YouTuber: 1. Kill Han Dong-hoon who is arrested and transferred. 2. Cho Kuk, Yang Jung-cheol, and Kim Eo-jun are arrested and run away while pretending to raid and rescue the troops being escorted. The killing of Han Dong-hoon is easily attributed to North Korea.]

[Kwon Sung-dong / Floor Leader of the People's Power]: I think the market is up. Can the world's jangdolbaegi stay still? But maybe a day before the impeachment vote, we're going to shake up our party...]

[Anchor]
There is no way for us to know if that's a really long line or a really definite report. Anyway, Kim Eo-jun must have said it because he thought it was a clear report, right? How should I look at it?

[Jang Hyun-joo]
What Kim Eo-jun said yesterday at the Science and Defense Department is really shocking. In fact, it sounds like a story that doesn't have an incredible sense of reality. In addition, it was a disguised operation to blame the North Korean military for all these things, which is a tremendous story, so I think Kim Eo-jun will also be well aware of what responsibility he will be held later if he tells such a serious story in the National Assembly and National Defense.

At the same time, he did not disclose the informant, but he said it to the effect that it is at least an ally country with a domestic embassy. In particular, I told the Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Kim Byung-joo that he would check and make a judgment because he has handed over a related report to him. Therefore, it seems that the party will also judge whether these reports are true or not.

It seems that the media has also started to report on who the informant is and whether the contents of this report are true. That's why I think it will be revealed in a little while whether these are really unfounded stories or what kind of scary stories are with a basis.

[Anchor]
It was also quite shocking that the ruling party leader was ordered to be arrested, and there was an order to kill him beyond arrest. It's such a shocking story. Is it fake news in the power of the people? What's your position?

[Kim Gi-heung]
Isn't it confusing for many people because of martial law, martial law politics. However, in the meantime, it is very worrisome to make fake news public for political gain. Above all, he talks about it. Don't you say that you haven't confirmed all the stories and facts that are so absurd? Then, you come to the National Assembly and say things that have not been confirmed.

Then, when the people look at it, they don't think about the front part. CEO Han Dong-hoon almost died, he tried to kill him. This is the only thing that gets imprinted in your head. This is the form of conspiracy theories and fake news. If you are right, the National Assembly and the Democratic Party can calmly find out about this and then be responsible. Isn't the opposition aiming for an authoritarian party?

People are nervous now. I don't know what the truth is. We're going through an investigative agency. I don't know the truth yet, in reality. But in this process, you say this while you are aware that you are not close to the truth? Is this accountable? And how will Choi Min-hee take political responsibility for the National Assembly and the National Defense Council that lays the groundwork?

If there's a problem later, I'll do that. Kim Eo-jun said it. And I'm not reliable in saying this, so I can reveal the source of the report. You said it was an ally country. The U.S. said no. Where is the friendly country? Is it Japan? So these are the problems. It's okay to attack the president with facts or talk about the injustice of martial law now, but they're positioning themselves through what people are anxious about.

I'll tell you. The impeachment of former President Park Geun Hye, there was a lot of fake news at that time. Former President Park Geun Hye enjoyed the secret meeting, had a gut, 7 hours. Is there anything that's been revealed? I turned it on. Some positions may differ on impeachment. The evaluation of former President Park Geun Hye's impeachment may differ, but no one was responsible for countless fake news in the process.

Then someone would benefit a lot from fake news about this. The truth is this much, but this can dwarf the truth. It can be over-inflated. That's why the Democratic Party is responsible for this part, and if this is true, the reason for the president's impeachment would be clear. And of course, it's right to receive criminal punishment, because it's a crime of rebellion.

So, this part. When you talk about very important parts, you have to talk responsibly, but you also say that you are a novel, absurd, and haven't confirmed the facts, but you do this in a place called the National Assembly? This is too politically motivated.

[Anchor]
If you listen to the content, it's not that there was an order to kill, but it's very specific. This is because it is easy to blame North Korea for killing representative Lee Han Dong-hoon. It includes such information, but Kim Eo-jun and the Democratic Party of Korea had a connection in advance. Can we see it like this?

[Jang Hyun-joo]
There was a connection, this doesn't seem to be confirmed. I think the party will quickly verify this part because it is said that it has handed over the contents of this report to some Democratic lawmakers. Of course, Kim Eo-jun's story seems too scary and maybe unrealistic, but it's very heavy to tell this story in the National Assembly and defense.

And the reason why the people listen to this story is that a few months ago, when Kim Min-seok, the supreme council member of the Democratic Party, brought up the emergency martial law, the people's power lawmakers did. What kind of emergency protocol? It was said that we should prepare for an alien invasion. But the emergency martial law came true last week.

No one thought that emergency martial law would be achieved, but since it has already been done, I think the people are hearing Kim Eo-jun's story in the sense that they should actually knock on the stone bridge. In particular, reports are now going on follow-up coverage. There's this part.

There are some interviews with MBC radio on the 12th by U.S. Congressman Bread Sher. So on the 13th, Kim Eo-jun came out on the over-defense and said that, and in a radio interview the day before, U.S. Representative Brad Sherman asks the host. Former Minister Kim Yong-hyun asked if he was trying to start a local war about a week before martial law, and while answering this, the North Korean military mentioned the possibility of domestic unrest through camouflage at the time.

There was nothing like that in the question, but the answer says that even if the South Korean military attempted to attack the country by disguising itself as a North Korean soldier, the U.S. would have fully grasped this through intelligence collection. I think the media is paying more attention to why this answer came out. In this regard, of course, I think the Democratic Party of Korea, the investigative agency, and the media should check the facts together.

[Anchor]
He said that the truth should be firmly considered because it was a statement from over-defense and Kim Eo-jun's remarks just before the impeachment vote. The statements of the people in charge continue to pour out through the investigation of the prosecution and police, and various things are being said about the truth of the day. Ahead of the impeachment vote, President Yoon Suk Yeol came forward and made various arguments in his statement. Let's listen to that one more time.

Since the presidential statement came out, officials have been pouring out testimony. Critics point out that it is contrary to the contents of the president's statement. In particular, the answer that a small force was sent to the National Assembly and that it was to maintain order is not correct in a situation where the order for the arrest of politicians is revealed more specifically.

[Kim Gi-heung]
So, first of all, the most important issue of the rebellion is how directly the president intervened in this area. I think that's why former Minister Kim Yong-hyun or martial law commander Kim Yong-hyun committed some illegal acts at his own judgment. Therefore, the difference between the president's statement and the situation that took place until the dawn of the 3rd and 4th of that night seems to exist because the people watched it live.

Above all, in the case of the commander of the special forces, the president called quickly and told him to break the door on a non-phone and quickly go in and bring out lawmakers, and in the case of the 1st deputy director of the National Intelligence Service, he also instructed him to take this opportunity and organize everything.

And catch all the cases of former police chief Jo Ji-ho, arrest him for violating martial law. That's what I said. So, in light of the statements that have been made now, it is true that the president is very unfavorable to the president when it comes to simply saying that there was no direct order on the site. If so, whether they told the truth through a confession of conscience or because they systematically kissed each other to avoid punishment for the current situation, it was just instructed, and I acted very passively.

I even made a protest, so I think this is something that will be revealed through the investigation and investigation of the investigative agency.

[Anchor]
In the case of former Minister Kim Yong-hyun, even though he is a key figure in the martial law crisis and is in custody, he is said to be stating that he was following the instructions.

[Jang Hyun-joo]
The charges that they are receiving now, such as former Minister Kim Yong-hyun, the head of the National Police Agency, and the head of the Seoul Metropolitan Government, are all suspected of being important mission workers. If so, the head of the civil war, which is the upper level, is empty. In fact, it should be considered that President Yoon Suk Yeol is being investigated as a related monster.

Therefore, it is expected that all former Minister Kim Yong-hyun and the commissioners will eventually make statements that the president's order was given later. There are continuous revelations that the commanders at the scene at the time instructed the president to go into the National Assembly and bring out the lawmakers. If only the president says he didn't give such an order, in fact, the investigative agency is more likely to believe the president's story and the rest of the unified commanders' story.

And even from the people's point of view, the president did not instruct them to go to the National Assembly. Then, there was no order, but the commanders moved on their own. In fact, there are parts that are difficult to understand. Therefore, it seems that there were many aspects that did not fit the public's legal sentiment or the public's eye level because the president's statement contains a lot of arguments and legal defenses in certain legal proceedings.

[Anchor]
Large gatherings are taking place everywhere ahead of today's impeachment vote. We're showing you the real-time on-site situation right now. If you look to the left, you will see the situation in Yeouido, Seoul. A pro-impeachment rally is being held. On the right is Gwanghwamun, Seoul. An anti-impeachment rally is being held here.

Those in favor of impeachment will continue the national candlelight vigilance today. The anti-impeachment rally, where conservative groups gather, will also continue today. There are about two and a half hours left until the vote. You have about two hours and 20 minutes left. With about 2 hours and 20 minutes left, I'm showing you the split screen on the left and right. People are gathering one after another.

As the media analyzed that the situation is more likely to pass than last week, organizers of the rally predicted that more people would gather today than last week for the pro-impeachment rally. As the voting time gets closer, more people are expected to gather. In addition, depending on the results of the vote, both rallies in favor of impeachment and counter-attacks are expected to change the atmosphere.

We will continue to show you through the pro-impeachment rally screen. President Yoon Suk Yeol's statement strongly emphasized that he was not a crime of rebellion. Even if the impeachment is passed and goes to the Constitutional Court, President Yoon Suk Yeol's position is that I will make a public statement through a public hearing and ask for a live broadcast?

[Kim Gi-heung]
Former President Park Geun Hye did not actively explain himself during the Constitutional Court trial and during the judgment process. There's some interpretation like that. But doesn't the public statement that the president talked about on the 12th say that? He announced in advance what he would say at the Constitutional Court and the summary of his argument. He said he explained it in advance.

And as the people know, the president used to be a prosecutor, right? Prosecutor General, the prosecutors are confident in this legal aspect because they served as the prosecutor general in the upper command, which can be called the flower. There seem to be two major issues in this area right now.

Is it a requirement to invoke martial law? And the other thing is that in the process of lifting martial law in this area, the issue is whether the president disturbed the constitutional institution and the national constitution to prevent this. In that respect, if you look at the statement on the 12th, the president keeps talking about the problems with the opposition party, right?

In fact, in a situation where the opposition party virtually paralyzed the Yoon Suk Yeol government through impeachment, special prosecutors, and reduced budgets, the only authority I could do was martial law under the constitution. There's a side that talks about this inevitability. The other thing is that I don't think this is the same martial law as before. It's to warn you. So-called martial law, the impression is that.

Isn't Chun Doo-hwan doing that if you look at the December 12 incident, not the president's martial law? I think I will put weight on continuing to highlight any differences in that respect.

[Anchor]
Let me ask Vice Chairman Jang Hyun-joo one last question. If it goes to the Constitutional Court, it is a matter of interest whether it will be approved today and cited or rejected, but now the pro-Yoon-gye and Yoon Suk Yeol presidents are talking about Article 51 of the Constitution. Please explain what this is and how likely it is to be accepted.

[Jang Hyun-joo]
So it's about Article 51 of the Constitutional Court Act. How it is stipulated is that the impeachment proceedings may be suspended when the impeachment proceedings are in progress for the same reason and when the criminal proceedings are in progress for the same reason. In the end, since it is a voluntary regulation, the court judges and eventually impeaches it, but if the same reason is in criminal proceedings, the conclusion may be different and the impeachment proceedings may be suspended for a little while.

In fact, there are cases. Earlier this year, prosecutor Son Jun-sung was being impeached, but he was also facing criminal proceedings. Because it was for the same reason, the Constitutional Court suspended the impeachment trial process. But even though the president probably claims this article, can the impeachment of the president and the impeachment lawsuit against one of the many prosecutors be considered the same?

I think the Constitutional Court judges will definitely judge this properly at their discretion. Of course, the continued length of the president's acting system does not fit in the constitutional procedure of Korea, so it is expected that the impeachment trial process will be completed as soon as possible regardless of these claims.

[Anchor]
So far, we've talked with the two of you. Kim Ki-heung, former deputy spokesperson for the president's office, said, "We went out wrong as a spokesperson in the subtitles a while ago, but we were deputy spokesperson." I talked with Jang Hyun-joo, vice chairman of the Democratic Party of Korea's legal committee. Thank you.