Lee Jae-myung, the leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, noted on the 19th, "In the Republic of Korea, the Democratic Party's stance and position is that it is around center-right, which is my usual belief."

On this day, Lee said during an MBC 100-minute discussion held under the theme 'A crisis in Korean society, asking for solutions,' "Right now, we need to focus the center of values on practicality and emphasize growth more," adding, "It's not that we want to become a conservative party, but that the role of healthy conservatism and rational conservatism should also be our share."

Lee Jae-myung, the representative of the Democratic Party, is speaking while appearing on '100 Minutes of Discussion' at MBC in Sangam-dong, Mapo-gu, Seoul on Nov. 19. /Courtesy of the Democratic Party

Regarding the recent evaluation of his actions as 'right-winging,' Lee said, "The Democratic Party has balanced distribution and growth."

He continued, "The economic situation is too difficult right now, and if we don't focus on the economy, we're likely to face negative growth, so where is there time to talk about distribution and fairness?" adding, "People are saying we have right-winged because of this, but we're just discussing things in our place."

When a panelist asked, "Aren't you worried about the backlash from your supporters?" Lee replied, "I don't think our supporters will misunderstand (my thoughts)."

Lee stated, "Although they call the People Power Party a conservative party, it is currently almost devolving into a criminal organization," adding, "Can it be said that a party that protects and moves with forces that destroy constitutional order and instigate unconstitutional coup d'état is a conservative party?"

He continued, "Is the People Power Party conservative? I don't think so," stating, "They are pretending to be conservative. Therefore, I believe our Democratic Party should occupy that position, and I actually think we have played that role to a considerable extent."

Earlier, on the previous day, Lee appeared in an interview on the YouTube channel 'New Day,' saying, "The progressive camp needs to be newly established," and adding, "We actually have a position that is somewhat center-right." Regarding Lee's comments, the People Power Party criticized him for "pretending to be conservative." There were also sharp reactions within the Democratic Party, with comments like "Defining party identity alone is overreach" (former Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum) and "It's like abandoning my own house" (former floor leader Park Kwang-on).

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