In the news today: South Korea’s short-lived martial law; Pete Hegseth faces questions; and why European farmers are opposing a free trade pact. Also, find out what this year’s most mispronounced words were.
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People at a candlelight vigil against South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol in Seoul, South Korea, Dec. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man) |
South Korea’s opposition parties submit a motion to impeach President Yoon after shock martial law causes chaos |
President Yoon Suk Yeol is under pressure from opposition parties to leave office hours after he ended a shocking and short-lived martial law that drew heavily armed troops to encircle parliament before lawmakers climbed walls to reenter the building and unanimously voted to lift his order. Such scenes of military intervention had not been seen since South Korea achieved a democracy in the late 1980s until Tuesday night. Read more.
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Yoon’s senior advisers and secretaries offered to resign collectively and his Cabinet members, including Defense Minister Kim Yong Hyun, were also facing calls to step down, as the nation struggled to make sense of what appeared to be a poorly-thought-out stunt.
Impeaching Yoon would require the support of two-thirds of parliament and at least six justices of the nine-member Constitutional Court would have to support it to remove him from office. The motion could be put to a vote as early as Friday. If Yoon is impeached, he’ll be stripped of his constitutional powers until the Constitutional Court rules. Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, the No. 2 position in the South Korean government, would take over his presidential responsibilities.
- Yoon’s declaration, the first of its kind in more than 40 years, harkened to South Korea’s past military-backed governments when authorities occasionally proclaimed martial law and other decrees that allowed them to station combat soldiers, tanks and armored vehicles on streets or at public places like schools to prevent anti-government demonstrations.
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Pete Hegseth, Trump's defense pick, faces deepening scrutiny in the Senate |
President-elect Donald Trump’s defense pick is running into questions over a sexual assault allegation, which he has denied, and other emerging reports about his work conduct and history. Hegseth told reporters he was planning to sit down with senators, even those potentially skeptical of his nomination. He has spent a second day on Capitol Hill meeting privately with Republican senators. Read more.
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GOP senators have been weighing their options. Sen. Lindsey Graham said some of the reports are “disturbing.” “I want to make sure that every young woman that joins the military feels respected and welcomed,” Graham told CBS News. The South Carolina lawmaker told the AP later that he doesn’t know whether to believe the allegations, and Hegseth “has a chance to say that’s true or not true.”
Trump’s choices can only afford to lose a few detractors in the Senate, where it takes majority approval to be confirmed. Republicans will have a 53-seat majority in the new year, meaning four GOP votes could sink a nominee, if all Democrats are opposed.
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If confirmed, Hegseth would not only be part of critical command and control of the nation’s nuclear weapons, but he would also be sixth in the line of succession to the presidency. It’s a position that ages its occupants and demands constant response, due to the number of middle-of-the-night contingencies that can occur when U.S. service members are put in harm’s way.
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Massive EU-South American free trade pact would reduce tariffs, but some farmers are opposed |
After more than 20 years of negotiations, the 27-nation European Union and Mercosur — a South American trade bloc of Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay and Bolivia — are still trying to finalize a major trade agreement that is sparking protests by European farmers. Read more.
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The deal aims to create one of the largest free trade zones in the world, covering over 700 million people and nearly 25% of global GDP. Much like the U.S.-Mexico-Canada free trade agreement, its goal is to reduce tariffs and trade barriers, making it easier for businesses on both sides to export goods.
European farmers, especially in France, worry that an influx of South American products would saturate their markets, undercutting local agriculture. One year after a massive European farmers’ protest movement, another round of protests has erupted across the continent, with many claiming that reduced tariffs or duty-free quotas for South American products could be fatal for them.
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In South America, leaders like Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva view the agreement as a boost for regional trade and economic growth. The deal is also backed by industries in both regions. European carmakers and pharmaceutical companies see it as a way to access Mercosur’s growing markets.
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Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris in Allentown, Pa., Nov. 4, 2024, and Chappell Roan in Elmont, N.Y., on Sept. 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Invision) |
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