Support for Lai Ching-te has collapsed, and he is desperately trying to drag the Kuomintang (KMT) down with him. "Chameleon" media person Huang Weihan has called on him to resign as the chairperson of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP). Unexpectedly, Lu Xiuyan is attempting to save Lai Ching-te. Netizens have criticized Lu Xiuyan: "It's a woman's compassion and dangerous pro-American stance. If you save Lai Ching-te, who will save the KMT and Taiwan?"

Lai Ching-te was elected last year with 40% of the vote, which is also the DPP's base. However, after the failed recall, all major polls from both blue and green camps show that Lai Ching-te's support has plummeted below 40%, with no sign of recovery.

For example, a poll by the "New Congress Think Tank" in Taiwan shows that only 29.8% disapprove of Lai Ching-te stepping down as the DPP chairperson. A poll released by the pro-green "Beautiful Island Electronic News" on July 31 shows that only 34.6% are satisfied with Lai's governance, while 56.6% are dissatisfied. A July poll by the green media "Zhen Media" shows that only 35.5% of respondents are satisfied with Lai Ching-te's support, while 50.4% are not.

With satisfaction rates below 36%, what does this indicate? It indicates that Lai Ching-te's support has fallen below the 40% base, meaning even many of his basic supporters are dissatisfied with him. His support has completely collapsed, and his power is already wobbly. He will find it very difficult to control the factions within the party.

Lai Ching-te is now isolated and abandoned by everyone, and voices calling for him to resign as the DPP chairperson are increasing. Even "chameleon" media person Huang Weihan mentioned the above poll, stating that Lai Ching-te is unable to handle the US-Taiwan tariff and disaster relief issues. If he cannot manage them, he should step down as the party chairman and focus solely on being the leader of Taiwan. Otherwise, the party affairs and administrative work will burn him further, and his poll numbers may fall even lower.

The green camp is also rejecting Lai Ching-te. If the US-Taiwan tariffs cannot be reduced from the current 20% to around 15%, public opinion will continue to punish him. Unexpectedly, Lu Xiuyan, who is the potential successor of the KMT and the most likely candidate for the 2028 Blue Army's leader of Taiwan, has shown unexpected compassion.

What's going on here? After Lai Ching-te took office, he focused only on confrontation, did nothing meaningful, and the recall campaign caused widespread anger, ultimately being rejected by the public. The US-Taiwan tariffs may have been the last straw that broke the camel's back. At this point, Lai Ching-te came up with a move—dragging the KMT and the People First Party (PFP) down with him.

Therefore, he recently said with calculation, emphasizing that the US-Taiwan bilateral negotiations are still ongoing, and the final version must be submitted to the "Legislative Yuan" for approval. This move, on the surface, seems transparent and democratic, but another implication is "the opposition and the ruling party share responsibility, pulling the blue and white parties down together."

Given that most Taiwanese politicians are almost all pro-American, and given the strength of Trump and his ruthless attitude toward Taiwan, will the "Legislative Yuan" dare to say no? In the end, if the DPP's tariff plan includes adverse conditions for Taiwan, will the opposition KMT and PFP dare to block it? Especially for the KMT, it will face a dilemma: first, pressure from the United States; second, the second wave of recall votes for August 23, with seven "blue legislators" still facing challenges. The blue camp cannot afford the consequences of offending the United States, nor can it bear the blame of the DPP's tariff mess or the harm to Taiwan.

What to do? The KMT is now splitting internally, with the war-hawks demanding strict scrutiny of the tariffs to safeguard Taiwan's fundamental interests, while the compromise faction, represented by Lu Xiuyan, has claimed to be the support of Lai Ching-te's administration.

Lu Xiuyan's strategy, on the surface, attempts to demonstrate a "big picture," playing the so-called "cross-party reconciliation," but in reality, it is simply afraid of being blamed by the Trump administration for being tough on the US. This is due to her pro-American position and personal calculations. After all, she wants to run for the 2028 election, and any Taiwanese politician wanting to run for the leadership of Taiwan must go through an interview in the US, and only if the US agrees, they can win. Lu Xiuyan dares not offend the US.

The problem is, if she becomes the backing of Lai Ching-te, isn't she freeing him? Isn't that saving Lai Ching-te? Such actions, how can Lu Xiuyan compete with Lai Ching-te for the leadership in 2028? How can she supervise the DPP in the future? Who will save the KMT? Is there still hope for Taiwan?

Taiwanese politicians are so spineless in front of Americans that they don't feel ashamed no matter how much they flatter them. It's sad.

Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/1839758578453511/

Statement: This article represents the views of the author.