'Do we need to prep for a confirmation hearing?' — Cheong Wa Dae policy chief vacancy draws all eyes in Sejong

Kim Jung-kwan seen as leading candidate; concerns also raised over 'Kim Yong-beom Season 2'

Dilemma emerges over whether to shake up US trade negotiations or maintain continuity

Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Kim Jung-kwan (first from right) attends the G20 Ministers for Innovation meeting hosted by US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, on Sept. 2 (local time). [Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy]

The search for a new Cheong Wa Dae policy chief has become the talk of the government district in Sejong. With Trade Minister Kim Jung-kwan emerging as a leading candidate, officials inside the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy have begun quietly asking whether they should start preparing for a successor's confirmation hearing.

The policy chief oversees and coordinates all policy across government ministries — with the exception of foreign affairs, defense and unification — including the president's key state agenda.

According to government sources Sunday, Cheong Wa Dae has narrowed down its list of candidates for the new policy chief and launched the vetting process.

The post cannot remain vacant for long, as the National Assembly is set to begin deliberations on next year's budget, tax reform proposals and major infrastructure projects. It has now been two weeks since former Policy Chief Kim Yong-beom's resignation was accepted.

Kim submitted his resignation on Aug. 31, and President Lee Jae Myung accepted it on Sept. 1. It was the first time a Cheong Wa Dae chief had stepped down since the current administration took office. The departure was widely interpreted as an effective dismissal, with Kim identified as the policy control tower after the president's approval rating fell amid controversy over the introduction of single-stock leveraged ETFs — which triggered sharp swings in the stock market — and real estate policy measures.

Names circulating in government intelligence circles as leading candidates include Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Kim Jung-kwan, a 36th civil service exam class alumnus with a background at the Ministry of Economy and Finance; Ko Hyung-kwon, vice chairman of BS Group and a 30th-class alumnus; former Cheong Wa Dae Policy Chief Lee Ho-seung, a 32nd-class alumnus; former Office for Government Policy Coordination chief Yoon Chang-ryul, a 34th-class alumnus; Cheong Wa Dae Senior Secretary for Economic Growth Ha Jun-kyung; and Kim Sung-sik, vice chairman of the National Economic Advisory Council.

Among sitting ministers, Kim Jung-kwan is considered the frontrunner. Government sources say there is reluctance, however, to move the minister overseeing trade at a time when pressure from the Donald Trump administration over US investment is intensifying. Kim has cultivated a close relationship with US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick — his counterpart on US investment matters — since taking office last July, a connection he has promoted internally. Some analysts suggest that relationship has paradoxically become an obstacle to his elevation to policy chief.

Others argue the opposite — that precisely because negotiations with the Trump administration on tariffs and US investment have amounted to little more than accepting Washington's demands without resistance, it may be time to change the lead negotiator and reset the table.

"One way to flip the script in a defensive US investment negotiation is to change the negotiator," said a researcher at a state-run think tank. "In that sense, it may be better to replace Minister Kim Jung-kwan, who is currently in a subordinate position relative to Secretary Lutnick."

Concerns have also been raised that appointing Kim or promoting someone from within Cheong Wa Dae could amount to a "Kim Yong-beom Season 2." The former policy chief and the trade minister share ties through South Jeolla Province, the Ministry of Economy and Finance and Seoul National University's economics department, and both have been central figures in leading US trade negotiations.

There is also the question of how relationships would be managed if Kim were to become policy chief, given that he, Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister nominee Lee Hyung-il, and Office for Government Policy Coordination chief Im Gi-geun are all Ministry of Economy and Finance alumni from the same 36th civil service exam class.

"President Lee Jae Myung called for change at the Ministry of Economy and Finance when he was a candidate, yet key ministerial posts have ultimately gone to ministry alumni," a Sejong government official said. "It is worth asking where the economic policies that have dragged down this administration's approval rating — real estate, tax reform, single-stock leveraged ETFs — were actually driven from."

oskymoon@heraldcorp.com