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The president's self-deprecating humor

Published: 05 Feb. 2026, 00:02

Kim Seung-hyun

The author is an editorial writer at the JoongAng Ilbo.

President Lee Jae Myung’s verbal agility rivals that of Yoo Jae-suk, the nation’s most celebrated entertainer. Cabinet ministers often struggle to keep pace with his quick wit. With presidential briefings, Cabinet meetings and senior advisers’ sessions now fully open to the public, video evidence of his rhetorical flair continues to accumulate. His polished delivery mimics the footwork and punches of a boxing legend who “floats like a butterfly and stings like a bee.” Another memorable example of his wit came on Tuesday during a policy briefing on the highly sensitive issue of ending the grace period for higher capital gains taxes on owners of multiple homes. Lee demonstrated an almost unmatched ability to turn a minor verbal habit into a sharp policy message.

President Lee Jae Myung, left, speaks with Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Koo Yun-cheol during the fourth Cabinet meeting at the main building of the Blue House on Feb. 3. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

Koo Yun-cheol, the deputy prime minister, said, “I think this is probably the last chance to avoid the heavier tax burden, probably. [...] I hope people will use this opportunity so they are not subject to higher taxes.”

President Lee Jae Myung replied, “Minister, you used the word probably twice just now. There is no 'probably.'”

His point was clear. After three previous extensions, the government was determined to enforce the higher tax rates this time; there was no room for ambiguity. When Koo repeated the word, Lee cut him off: “I told you, no 'probably.'” Laughter erupted around the room, and the message landed with greater force. For the foreseeable future, “probably” may as well be a banned word for the deputy prime minister.

Lee’s rhetorical reflexes are even sharper when he turns them on himself. He has a particular talent for self-deprecating humor. The same briefing on Tuesday provided an example of this. As ministers discussed free technology support for small- and medium-sized enterprises, Industry Minister Kim Jung-kwan suggested encouraging voluntary participation by large conglomerates. Lee stared at him and responded, “It seems the industry minister does not fully grasp how harsh the world can be. If the government accepts corporate donations in connection with its work, prosecutors would call it third-party bribery. You go to prison.”

When Health and Welfare Minister Jeong Eun-kyeong floated a similar idea, Lee joked again, “Based on the Lee Jae Myung precedent, that would lead to indictment for third-party bribery.” It was dark humor rooted in personal experience. When he was mayor of Seongnam, Lee helped resolve regulatory issues for large corporations while Seongnam FC, a football club he chaired, received 5 billion won ($3.44 million) in sponsorships. Under the previous Yoon Suk Yeol administration, police and prosecutors judged the process to involve third-party bribery and indicted him in 2023. By linking the ministers’ good-faith proposals to his own legal troubles, Lee was, in effect, airing a lingering sense of grievance.

Such self-mockery surfaced again last December at an Education Ministry briefing at the Sejong Convention Center. When the head of the Institute for the Translation of Korean Classics lamented students’ declining knowledge of Chinese characters and noted that many could not recognize the characters in the president’s name, Lee quipped, “That’s why some people write it as ‘crime name,’ isn’t it?” — a play on his given name, Jae Myung, which sounds similar to joe-myeong, meaning the name of a crime someone has committed. Online critics often take the joke further by deliberately misspelling his name as Lee Joe-myeong with the character for “crime.” Even a derogatory nickname highlighting his legal risks was repurposed into humor.

At a New Year’s press conference, when asked about prosecutorial reform — and whether the government’s push amounted to a “witch hunt” against prosecutors — Lee said he believed he had suffered most at their hands, calling them “the real witches.” He added, “I’ve also been found not guilty many times. That’s how I survived to stand here.” Mark Twain’s line that the source of humor is sorrow rather than joy came to mind.

Han Byung-do, the floor leader of the Democratic Party, speaks during a Supreme Council meeting at the National Assembly on Feb. 4. Party leader Jung Chung-rae sits to his left. [YONHAP]

Self-deprecating humor carries a dual nature. It humanizes the speaker and fosters familiarity, but it also functions as a defensive mechanism, pre-empting attacks by embracing them first. That is why the aftertaste of such laughter can feel bitter. What message does the head of state's repeated self-mockery send to the ruling party? During Tuesday's policy briefing, Democratic Party floor leader Han Byung-do declared in a parliamentary address that the party would swiftly process three major judicial reform bills in the name of the “spirit of the times.” The proposals — expanding the number of Supreme Court justices, introducing a constitutional complaint system for trials and creating a new offense of judicial distortion — have drawn suspicion as “bulletproof legislation” designed to ease the president’s legal exposure.

Is it a stretch to connect the president’s jokes to the ruling party’s legislative push? One hopes so. Ideally, a joke remains just that — nothing more.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.