Two Tigers: Ma Ying-jeou and Chen Shui-bian

Two Tigers: Ma Ying-jeou and Chen Shui-bian
United Daily News Editorial (Taipei, China)
A Translation
May 20, 2008

Chen Shui-bian and Ma Ying-jeou were both born in 1950, under the sign of the tiger. Today, President Chen Shui-bian will hand power over to Ma Ying-jeou.

This is the second time Chen Shui-bian has handed over power to Ma Ying-jeou. Ten years ago, In 1998, Taipei Mayor Chen Shui-bian lost his bid for re-election to Ma Ying-jeou. The consensus was that Chen's loss to Ma was a one time event. Chen Shui-bian was optimistic about a comeback. Today, 10 years later, in 2008, Hsieh has lost to his bid for the presidency to Ma Ying-jeou. But the consensus is it was really Chen Shui-bian who lost to Ma Ying-jeou. This time Chen Shui-bian lost more than political power. He lost his reputation. He lost his bona fides as the "Son of Taiwan" and his right to speak for "Taiwanese Values." He sullied the reputation of the DPP. He discredited the very notion of a 400 year old heritage of "native Taiwanese values."

Ma Ying-jeou has succeeded Chen Shui-bian twice in a single decade. Such are the vicissitudes of political life. Ten years ago, Chen Shui-bian lost his bid for reelection as Taipei Mayor to Ma Ying-jeou. That evening, as Chen thanked supporters, a tearful audience shouted, "A-bian for President!" Ten years later, all one hears across the land is cries of "A-Bian, Step Down!" Chen Shui-bian has twice paved the way for Ma Ying-jeou. Ten years ago, Ma Ying-jeou provided the springboard for Chen Shui-bian's presidential bid. Ten years later, Chen Shui-bian has provided the springboard for Ma Ying-jeou's presidential bid.

Ten years ago, Chen Shui-bian compared himself to a "mutt" and Ma Ying-jeou to a "poodle." Chen Shui-bian and Ma Ying-jeou are indeed two very different political animals. One is "Taiwanese," the other is a "Second Generation Mainlander." One is an attorney, the other is an academic. Ten years later however, the difference between Ma Ying-jeou and Chen Shui-bian has little to do with "mutts" and "poodles." Ten years later Chen Shui-bian is the "Shame of Taiwan," and Ma Ying-jeou symbolizes Taiwan's renewal of values.

Ten years ago, Chen Shui-bian was a sore loser. His satisfaction rating as mayor was high, yet he lost to Ma Ying-jeou. Chen Shui-bian was regarded as a man of ability. But he was unable to persuade others that he was a man of virtue, a man who could be trusted. As a result he was replaced by Ma Ying-jeou, a man who was perceived as a man of virtue, and a man who could be trusted. Ten years later, Chen Shui-bian has left an indelible image of himself as a corrupt and evil man, particularly next to Ma Ying-jeou.

By contrast, Ma Ying-jeou has always been regarded as a man of virtue. In fact, he has even been regarded as a man of virtue who was not a man of ability. Of course it may be that a man of virtue's abilities are not always immediately apparent. Whether this dichotomy between men of virtue and men of ability holds water remains to be seen. After all, Ma Ying-jeou's ability to maintain an image of himself as a man of virtue in the political arena is itself a kind of ability. Conversely, if Chen Shui-bian is a man of ability, yet has ended up defeated and disgraced, having destroyed his party and undermined his nation, is he really a man of ability?

How the future will unfold remains unknown. But if one had to sum up the lives of these two men today, one would have to say that Chen Shui-bian is the man who destroyed the DPP. He destroyed the DPP's political authority, he destroyed the DPP's political reputation. By contrast, Ma Ying-jeou, by helping the KMT regain its former status as the ruling party, is seen as a man who has given the KMT a new lease on life. Whether Ma Ying-jeou can help the KMT recast itself as the representative of mainstream Taiwan values remains to be seen.

Chen Shui-bian won the 2000 presidential election due to internal divisions within the KMT. As the standard bearer of the DPP's calls for reform, he once championed a "New Centrist Path." As a champion of "Rectification of Names and the Authoring of a New Constitution" however, his approval rating plummeted to mere 13%. By contrast, ever since Ma Ying-jeou accused the Lee Teng-hui regime of "abusing power for personal gain" in 1997, and resigned his position as a Minister of State, he has been seen as a reformist. Ma Ying-jeou is perceived as an antithesis of the machine politician, as someone who is "lonely at the top." Chen Shui-bian, who cast himself as a "reformer," wound up in bed with Deep Green Taiwan independence extremists, sealing his fate. Ma Ying-jeou is also cast as a reformer. What will be his fate? Will he be lonely at the top, or will he turn into a player who cuts sweetheart deals in smoke-filled rooms?

Two tigers. Chen Shui-bian became president eight years before Ma Ying-jeou. But during his eight years Chen Shui-bian divided the nation, demagogued Taiwan independence, and exploited "ethnic" bigotry to shield himself from prosecution for corruption. These two men are polar opposites. Ma Ying-jeou became president eight years later than Chen Shui-bian. If Chen Shui-bian hadn't demagogued these issues so shrilly, underscoring his rampant misrule and moral degeneracy, Ma Ying-jeou might not have won by such a landslide. Ma Ying-jeou might not have received such a clear mandate, even before assuming office. Over the past eight years, Chen Shui-bian destroyed himself and created President Ma Ying-jeou.

Ma Ying-jeou's integrity is a silent indictment of Chen Shui-bian. Chen Shui-bian meanwhile, is Ma Ying-jeou's object lesson.

兩隻老虎：馬英九與陳水扁的十年滄桑
【聯合報╱社論】
2008.05.20 03:01 am

陳水扁與馬英九同庚，皆生於一九五○年，肖虎。今天，陳水扁將把總統職位移交給馬英九。

這是扁馬第二次交接職務。十年前，一九九八年，陳水扁連任台北市長之役輸給了馬英九，當年輿論認為陳水扁只是輸掉一場選舉而已，但皆看好陳水扁有東山再起的潛能。如今十年後，二○○八年，雖是謝長廷在總統大選中敗給馬英九，但輿論皆認為是陳水扁再次輸給了馬英九；這一次，陳水扁且不僅輸掉了政權，更輸掉了人格形象，輸掉了他代表台灣價值的「台灣之子」地位，也輸掉了民進黨的名譽聲望，甚至羞辱玷汙了四百年來的台灣本土政治傳承。

扁馬十年兩次交接職位，呈現出耐人玩味的政治滄桑。十年前，陳水扁在市長之役被馬英九打敗，當晚的謝票晚會上，台下群眾噙淚高呼「阿扁仔，選總統！」；十年後，卻是幾乎在舉國皆聞「阿扁，下台」的怒吼聲中，由陳水扁親自為馬英九鋪平了邁入總統府的紅地毯。十年前，馬英九是陳水扁出馬競選總統的槓桿；十年後，陳水扁則是馬英九當選總統的槓桿。

十年前，陳水扁一開始就將自己與馬英九的對照比作「土狗／貴賓狗」。扁馬二人確屬兩個迥然不同的類型，其差異自「台灣人／外省人第二代」開始，就一路不同到「律師／學者」的總體人格特質。但是，十年後的今天，扁馬的對照似乎已不是「土狗／貴賓狗」；陳水扁幾乎被視為台灣之恥，而馬英九則彷彿被視為台灣價值重建的新標誌。

十年前，陳水扁輸得不甘願。他的市長施政滿意度不低，但連任之役卻輸給了馬英九。其實，早在當年，陳水扁就被視為「能人」，卻一直未能建立「可以信任」的「好人」的形象；因此，在十年前，馬英九「可堪信任」的「好人」形象，就擊敗了陳水扁。十年後的今天，陳水扁更是徹底毀於他自己所建立的「貪官／壞人」形象；尤其，在馬英九「好人」形象的對比下，將陳水扁的「壞人」樣貌襯托得更形鮮明強烈。

相對而言，馬英九則一直被視為「好人」；甚至因為「好人」而被視為不是「能人」，或者因「好人」而使人看不到他也是「能人」。然而，這種「好人／能人」的二分法究竟是否準確，尚待驗證；畢竟，馬英九能夠在濁惡的政壇保持「好人」的形象，這即是一種過人的能力；反過來說，陳水扁若是一名「能人」，最後卻弄到身敗名裂、黨毀國傷的地步，這難道還是「能人」嗎？

未來尚未可知，如果現在就對扁馬作一定論，或可謂：扁是毀滅民進黨之人，不但毀了民進黨政權，更且毀了民進黨所標榜的台灣價值。相對而言，馬英九則是中興國民黨之人，贏回了失去八年的執政地位；但馬英九能否重建再造國民黨穩居台灣主流價值的代表地位，卻是未定之數。

陳水扁在國民黨的分裂中贏得二○○○年總統大選之時，曾經以民進黨的改革旗手自詡，楬櫫「新中間路線」；但如今卻在「正名制憲」的台獨風潮中落敗，民調跌到只剩十三％。相對而言，馬英九自一九九七年指控李登輝政權「以權謀私，爭功諉過」而辭去政務委員以來，亦一直被視為國民黨內的改革派；所謂「孤峰頂上／紅塵浪裡」，或許正是馬英九的寫照。就此以言，標榜「改革」的陳水扁，最後反而與深綠極獨相互挾持，即注定了他今日的下場；現在就看也是標榜「改革」的馬英九，究竟將是「孤峰鎮紅塵」，抑或是「紅塵鎖孤峰」了？

兩隻老虎。陳水扁比馬英九早八年當上總統，但這八年來陳水扁在分裂國家、炒作台獨、族群鬥爭及政治貪腐上，皆有「非常極致」的表現；而馬英九比陳水扁晚八年當總統，但若非陳水扁將這些議題操作到如此極致且證明是失政敗德，馬英九或許不會如此順利地高票當選總統，亦不會在上任時就取得了如此鮮明的社會信任與共識。這個八年，陳水扁毀了自己，卻成就了馬英九。

馬英九是陳水扁的致命對照，陳水扁是馬英九的鮮明殷鑑！