If you have time to read one long story today, I recommend this one about the South Korea coup attempt in the Washington Post. I’m including a gift link so you can read the whole thing. Let’s just say the echoes are deafening:
Piecing together their accounts shows that Yoon’s plan had probably been months in the making and that he intended to use martial law to target political opponents and pursue baseless election fraud claims — a much more extensive agenda than he has claim
[…]
There was Yoon’s increasingly sharp rhetoric about his opponents. Then came the surprise appointment of his friend as defense minister. Then that minister surrounded himself with loyalists at the top of the chain of command. It seemed as if something as extreme as martial law could be in the works, said Park, formerly the nation’s deputy intelligence chief.
“We knew they were an extremely right-wing force, and they would do things we cannot imagine,” he said. “I warned this is a dangerous situation, it’s going to change quickly.”
All year, South Korea’s domestic political scene had been consumed by scandals — relentlessly targeted by the opposition — alleging corruption involving Yoon’s wife. The government declined to investigate, and the opposition blocked government initiatives, including budget measures, in response.
Yoon became increasingly isolated as he grew more frustrated, analysts say, leaning on a tiny group of loyalists, including Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun. This made Yoon more volatile, said Park Sung-min, a veteran political consultant.
Yoon’s decision in September to appoint Kim as the top defense official had prompted concerns, Park said. Not only was Kim known to be close to Yoon, the change was highly unusual ahead of the U.S. presidential election, given Seoul’s dependence on Washington for its security, the political consultant said.
Kim’s appointment also drew attention to the use of powerful school connections, which raised flags even in a nation that strongly values alumni networks.
Apparently, he was especially focused on manufactured charges of election interference and fraud. And yes, he did call out the military.
You have to read the whole thing. It’s such a cautionary tale. But then South Korea is apparently a much more highly developed democracy than America (despite our being 250 years old…) so they are actually managing to get rid of the guy who corrupted their government. We don’t do that here. When one of our presidents attempts a coup we send him home to his mansion for a few years to collect a bunch of money and then elect him again.