The controversy triggered by Shin Jae-min, a former deputy director of the Ministry of Strategy and Finance, appeared to quickly die down, but lawmaker Sohn Hye-won poured gas onto the dying flames, turning the situation into a near catastrophe. Lawmaker Sohn's uncouth post was outrageous, but the Democratic Party of Korea's negligence--as if watching a fire burning across the river--was also frightening. The reason the brakes failed to stop lawmaker Sohn's stampede was probably because she was fighting on "our side." This is similar to how the lawmakers rushed to silence the argument about Senior Secretary for Civil Affairs Cho Kuk's responsibility (raised by lawmaker Cho Eung-cheon), when a staff in Cheong Wa Dae's special inspection team stirred controversy.

Uniformity and blind loyalty is just as threatening to a democratic political party as division. Such symptoms seem to be permeating the Democratic Party.

The Democratic Party's ability to communicate is deteriorating. Four months since Lee Hae-chan emerged as the party leader, promoting a "strong ruling party," the party only held four meetings of its lawmakers. Aside from the meetings on the agreement reached by the ruling and opposition parties and the three "kindergarten bills" during the regular parliamentary session, they only held one meeting on state issues and major policies. That meeting was scheduled before Lee stepped up as the party leader and was held to discuss legislation easing the division of banking and commerce. I doubt that the party was reluctant to hold the meetings because everything was fine and there was no need for such meetings. They could have avoided the meetings for fear of “views different from Cheong Wa Dae’s position being voiced.” In fact, there has never been a time when the ruling party voiced so few "different views" as now. Even the first-time lawmakers, who cried "The party should not remain silent, unable to keep Cheong Wa Dae in check" during the party convention, are quiet. As a result, the party inevitably omitted discussions on major policy changes and the process of persuading their supporters. Rather than tow Cheong Wa Dae and the government, the party was busy chasing after the tasks and issues suggested by Cheong Wa Dae, reducing their position. On the last day of 2018, President Moon Jae-in held a luncheon with the party leaders. Ahead of the luncheon, the president and Lee Hae-chan had a private discussion alone. This was the first time that the two had an official meeting after Lee stepped up as the party leader. If it's so difficult for a ruling party leader to meet the president, then a meeting with the president must be out of the question for an average lawmaker. Something that should be so common as a meeting between the president and the ruling party leader is receiving the spotlight as a sign of communication between the ruling party and Cheong Wa Dae. This is a failure to communicate between the ruling party and Cheong Wa Dae in a so-called "democratic government."

The Democratic Party was helpless. A look at the Democratic Party's activities in 2018, its second year as the ruling party, would have resulted in a very humble result, if it had not been for the amendment of the Occupational Safety and Health Act to prevent the outsourcing of danger. The party is virtually empty-handed for the second year when it comes to reform legislation. The ruling party should reconsider “cooperation,” which it had chanted, before blaming the opposition parties. It was not even the efforts by the Democratic Party that made the amendment of the Occupational Safety and Health Act possible. It was the brutal death of Kim Yong-gyun, a subcontracted worker, and the tearful dedication and appeal of Kim Mi-suk, the mother who lost her son, which stirred the Occupational Safety and Health Act--a bill that had been dormant for 28 years. After the death of a nineteen-year-old worker of a subcontractor due to an accident at Guui Station three years ago, the Democratic Party, which was the major opposition at the time, presented a package of seven bills including the amendment of the Occupational Safety and Health Act under the heading, "bills to prevent the outsourcing of danger." The Democratic Party became the ruling party, but continued to neglect the bills. Legislation to prevent the outsourcing of danger came into this world only after the death of Kim Yong-gyun.

The Democratic Party has become negligent. On December 22, 100,000 taxi drivers gathered in a rally in Yeouido to protest the nation's policy on the carpool service. Lawmaker Jeon Hyun-heui (chairman of the Democratic Party's task force on taxis and carpools) was present from the Democratic Party, while from the Liberty Korea Party, the floor leader Na Kyung-won was present. The participants booed lawmaker Jeon during her speech, while they cheered lawmaker Na when she addressed the crowd. Although it was a demonstration of a particular interest group, such a different response between the Democratic Party and the Liberty Korea Party since the candlelight demonstrations has been rare. At the time, Democratic Party leader Lee attended a ceremony launching a special committee in the party, and floor leader Hong Young-pyo received a report from the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family. Before criticizing the negative propaganda by floor leader Na, the ruling party should reflect on its negligence. The Democratic Party paid a visit to the workers of FineTek, who are engaging in a sit-in atop a smokestack, just one day before they set the record for the longest sit-in (Dec. 24). The Democratic Party has forgotten the intensity on the site.

The approval rating of the Democratic Party remained in the 30% level after a steady fall. According to the survey firm, Realmeter, the party's approval ratings fell nearly 20% in six months from its peak immediately after the June 13 local elections. Since the high approval rating was not based on the ability of the Democratic Party, this can be seen as a process of synchronization with the drop of the president's approval ratings. What is noteworthy is that for some time, the supporters who turned away from the Democratic Party had moved over to the Justice Party, but recently, the fall in the approval rating for the Democratic Party seems to be connected to the rise in the approval rating of the Liberty Korea Party. But nothing much has changed with the Liberty Korea Party. In other words, the number of people actively opposing the Democratic Party, who opt to support the Liberty Korea Party because of their hatred of the Democratic Party, is increasing.

The Democratic Party has "achieved" too little, because they hold on to the vague hope that things will be different in an actual election, since their opponent is still the same Liberty Korea Party. They say that if there is something that cannot be retrieved from politics, it is time. The Democratic Party, which emerged from the desperate expectation of the candlelight public, wasted the golden second year as the ruling party.