Park asked if it would be appropriate for a lawmaker to call Roh a "weed president," though the president was elected by the people. "If lawmakers elected by the people are weeds," he said, "then what should we think of the people who elected them?"

The reason Roh compares some lawmakers to weeds and rejects recommendations resulting from the Assembly's appointment hearings, Park said, may be explained by a lack of faith in parliamentary democracy. "If he truly doesn't believe in the Assembly, and continues to ignore the recommendations, then he should not be forgiven," he said.

Roh's naming of Ko Young-koo as the nation's intelligence chief and Suh Dong-man as his chief aide, despite bipartisan parliamentary opposition, was a sign of the president's audacity, Park said. "The Assembly will not step aside as it has in the past, and relations between the president and the Assembly will be harsh," he said.

If Roh really wanted his appointments to be accepted, Park said, he should have presented to legislators adequate explanations for them and asked for understanding. He added that he had trouble understanding why Roh insisted on pushing forward with Suh's appointment, though lawmakers opposed it so vehemently.

Commenting on the president's U.S. visit, Park said that while observers are focusing on the content of the joint statement to be released after the summit, the most important thing was that trust between the two presidents be restored. Park suggested that Roh clearly convey his economic ideology and proceed properly on policy decisions and appointments after his return so that he can remove the suspicions of the United States.

(Hong Seok-jun, udo@chosun.com )