THE 'DONALD TRUMP OF ASIA' COULD USE SOME HELP

President Yoon warned of North Korean supporters in the opposition in his statement announcing and justifying martial law. He’s right. A sizable chunk of South Korea’s Democratic Party and leftist political world is pro-North Korea and also pro-China. And they are also anti-American and want to remove US troops and end the US-South Korea alliance.

- GRANT NEWSHAM

South Korean President Yoon Seok-yeol from American President Donald Trump.

And if there's one Asian leader President Trump has something in common with its President Yoon. Some even call Yoon "the Donald Trump of Asia." Since Yoon's election in May 2022, the leftist opposition Democratic Party (DP) has done everything possible to obstruct and destroy him including via its commanding majority in the National Assembly-a majority that was also quite possibly achieved via election fraud.

They've blocked his policies at every turn, slashed or zeroed out his budgets, and tried to impeach Yoon or his officials-including the Ministers of Justice and Interior at least 22 times since he took office.

Even Yoon's wife is being targeted on corruption charges.

This goes well beyond South Korea's normal sharp-elbowed politics.

Yoon described it as a "legislative dictatorship." Believing that consensual democracy was in danger of being snuffed out, Yoon declared martial law on 4 December 2024-as allowed by the Constitution.

He apparently saw it as the best way to beat back opposition that had made South Korea ungovernable and also to investigate election fraud allegations.

Yoon rescinded the decree in accordance with law after a matter of hours.

He was arrested six weeks later and charged with "insurrection" and has just been ordered released after five weeks in prison while South Korea's constitutional court decides his fate.

The make-up of the constitutional court is akin to a Republican being tried in either the overwhelmingly Democrat District of Columbia or New York-and predictably the court has hampered Yoon's defense.

President Trump will understand.

SOUTH KOREA'S DEMOCRATIC PARTY: NOT REGULAR 'LEFTISTS'

President Yoon warned of North Korean supporters in the opposition in his statement announcing and justifying martial law.

He's right.