The Green Card Crisis: Crisis Management? Or Management by Crisis?

The Green Card Crisis: Crisis Management? Or Management by Crisis?
United Daily News editorial (Taipei, Taiwan, ROC)
A Translation
June 6, 2008

To say that the "Green Card Controversy" has undermined the image of the Liu Chao-hsuan cabinet is not quite correct. It would be more accurate to say that the Liu cabinet's crisis management abilities, or lack thereof, have undermined the image of the Liu cabinet.

Given today's political atmosphere, having a green card may make one a political target. But turning your opponents' green cards into a major political storm may not be so easy. 1. A green card after all, is merely a green card. It is not dual citizenship. 2. The law prohibits political appointees from having dual citizenship, but it does not prohibit them from having a green card. In other words, having a green card is not illegal. 3. The alleged green card holders forfeited their green cards when they failed to renew them, or on their own initiative relinquished them. For example, National Security Council Advisor Tsan Man-yung. 4. Even if one has dual citizenship, as long as one relinquishes one's foreign citizenship, one may still hold political office. If one relinquishes one's green card, one has already done more than what is legally required. 5. The Ma Ying-jeou green card controversy has already been resolved. The issues are already clear. It is unnecessary to go over the same ground again. The Liu cabinet's green card "crisis" is largely of the Liu cabinet's own making!

Central Personnel Administration records show that the former DPP government included 21 political appointees who had dual citizenship -- not merely green cards. These included Minister for Foreign Affairs Tien Hung-mao, Minister of Education Tseng Chi-lang, and Minister of Finance Ho Chi-ching. They each relinquished their foreign citizenship only after beginning their terms of office. Minister of Economic Affairs Christine Tsung, served little over a month. When she left office, she still hadn't relinquished her foreign citizenship. At Large TSU Legislator Liu Kuan-ping retained his Swiss citizenship throughout his entire term in the legislature. In February this year he was appointed representative to Switzerland. Only then did submit an application to relinquish his Swiss citizenship. As of now, he has still not completed the procedure. If the DPP government's political appointees can delay relinquishing their dual citizenship until after their inauguration, how dare they make an issue of Liu cabinet members' expired or relinquished green cards? The green card controversy is nothing but an artificial issue concocted by the DPP. The problem is not green cards. The problem is the Liu cabinet's inept response.

When Premier Liu was forming his cabinet, he surely must have inquired about dual citizenship and green cards. If he didn't, then he is responsible. If he did, but is still unprepared for his cabinet members' green card issues, if he sits passively and allows the controversy to reach a boiling point, then that is even more incomprehensible. Once Premier Liu was alerted to his cabinet's green card issue, at least two responses were available. 1. Don't wait for the opposition to leak information to the press. Seize the initiative and announce the information yourself, in advance. Let the public know that your cabinet members' green cards have expired or been relinquished. 2. Passively wait for an opportunity to respond. Immediately make known the results of your initial findings. Make known that your green cards have already expired or have been relinquished. If one does this, green cards may still become a political issue, but they probably won't become a political crisis. Alas, the Liu cabinet has adopted a strategy of evasion. As a result the situation is steadily deteriorating, with no end in sight. Liu cabinet members went so far as to say that "relinquishing one's green card is a sacrifice," "those who have green cards are talented individuals with an international perspective," and "One must not implement a Closed Door Policy." Such responses merely add fuel to the fire.

It is impossible to govern a nation without encountering crises. The question is whether the ruling party has the ability to deal with any such crises. Crises will inflict damage. They will test leaders' ability to control the situation. The Taiwan that the Ma administration took over is beset with internal and external problems. It is beseiged by crises. The tempest that has enveloped the Ma administration since it took office 20 days ago has raged unabated. This was unexpected. The tempest has not been about the larger issues, but about details. Even minor slips of the tongue have triggered uproars. For example, the Ma administration announced an increase in oil prices at 5:45 pm. It urged legislators not to wear suits in the Legislative Yuan. It prohibited Lee Chu-feng from visiting the mainland, then reversed itself. It cavalierly declaring that disaster relief and flood control is the Executive Yuan's responsibility. And last but not least, it bungled its response to the green card issue. Members of the Ma administration knew that sooner or later the issue would explode in their faces, yet they allowed the situation to deteriorate until it was unmanageable. The Ma administration seems incapable of preventing crises from arising. It also seems incapable of limiting their damage once they have arisen. The Ma administration is politically blind and tone-deaf.

Political leaders must be able to set the agenda. The Ma administration took office 20 days ago. Apart from cross-strait relations, it has been utterly passive and on the defensive. It has allowed itself to be attacked without making any effort to hit back. One cannot dismiss Ma administration ineptitude by arguing that the media and political opposition are being too harsh. Political leaders need to examine their ability to react to such matters. In fact, it is almost impossible to find a high-ranking official on Taiwan who hasn't had problems with either dual citizenships or green cards. The DPP allowed 21 political appointees to take office even though they had dual citizenships. Yet the DPP has the colossal effrontery to criticize the Ma administration? The Ma administration has been reduced to groveling. The KMT is fully aware of its own plight, and has only itself to blame.

The Ma administration must promptly extricate itself from the mess it is in. On the one hand it must exercise damage control. On the other hand it must seize the rhetorical initiative. It must reach peoples' hearts and minds. Once it allows the DPP to create a negative image of the Ma administration in the public imagination, it will be too late for regrets.

綠卡風暴：危機處理，還是被危機處理？
【聯合報╱社論】
2008.06.11 02:58 am

與其說綠卡事件重創了劉內閣，不如說是劉內閣的「危機處理」重傷了自己。

在現今政治氛圍中，綠卡可能形成政治話題，卻未必能演成政治風暴。一、畢竟只是綠卡，而非雙重國籍。二、法律禁止政務官具有雙重國籍，但未禁止擁有綠卡；亦即，擁有綠卡並不違法。三、何況，據稱相關人等的綠卡皆已自然失效或已申請放棄，或正申請放棄（國安會諮詢委員詹滿容）。四、即使擁有雙重國籍，只要依法放棄，仍能任公職；則放棄綠卡者，已是「超標準」。五、經大選期間馬英九的綠卡事件及後續李慶安的雙重國籍事件，馬政府對綠卡的「危機」與「處理」應皆已有累積的因應能力，沒有重蹈覆轍的道理。依據以上理由，這次綠卡「危機」可謂大半是劉內閣自己「處理」出來的！

人事行政局的紀綠顯示，民進黨政府曾有二十一名政務官擁有雙重國籍（不是綠卡），包括外交部長田弘茂、教育部長曾志朗、財政部長何志欽等，均是在就職後始申請放棄；經濟部長宗才怡，則因任期僅一個多月，下任時還來不及放棄；另有台聯僑選立委劉寬平在立委任內全程擁有瑞士國籍，今年二月出任駐瑞士代表始申請放棄，但迄未完成手續。倘若民進黨政府的政務官，縱使有雙重國籍仍可待就職後放棄即可；則如今有何理由對並未違法且綠卡已失效或放棄者如此借題發揮？這場綠卡風暴，主因是緣於民進黨擅長製造「危機」，但劉內閣卻拙於「處理」。

劉揆在組閣時，理當詢明雙重國籍及綠卡事。若未詢明，責任在劉揆；若已詢明，並已知部分閣員有綠卡問題，卻竟似毫無準備，坐視風暴發展至今日地步，則尤其令人不解。劉揆在得知閣員有綠卡問題後，至少可有兩種因應方法。一、不待爆料，事先主動公布，並表示綠卡已經失效或放棄；二、等待被動時機出現時，在第一時間即完整公布已知的調查結果，並表示綠卡皆已失效或放棄。倘能如此，綠卡也許仍不免成為「話題」，但應不至於釀成「危機」或「風暴」。如今，劉內閣卻採「擠牙膏」的做法，遂使形勢愈陷愈深，找不到停損點。最後，甚至說「放棄綠卡是犧牲」、「有綠卡是有國際觀人才」、「不要鎖國」，這就更是投薪救火、火上加油了。

執政不可能沒有「危機」，考驗的是主政者「處理」的能力；危機必生「損害」，則考驗主政者「控制」的能力。馬政府接手的是內憂外患的台灣，自是「危機」四伏；然而，上任二十日竟是風波不斷，幾無寧日，卻是令人始料未及。何況，風暴皆未必是發生在事件主體，卻是在枝節處爆發，甚至只是幾句失言或口誤即引發軒然大波；如油品漲價在下午五時四十五分宣布、立法院要不要穿西裝、李炷烽登陸先禁後准，及輕率表示「勘災防洪是行政院職權」等等；而此次綠卡事件，更是應已明知早晚一定會爆發卻仍眼看著鬧到不可收拾。馬政府不能預防「危機」之發生於前，又不能控制「損害」之擴大於後，顯示這個團隊在政治運作能力上必有盲點及死角。

在今日情勢中，主政者必須具備的重要能力是引領議題；但馬政府上任二十日來，除兩岸題材確有領先，其餘議題則幾乎完全陷於被動及受攻擊的地位。這不能只說反對黨及媒體過於嚴厲，仍須檢討主政者的操作能力有無問題。其實，以台灣高層人才的生態言，政府組閣要不出現雙重國籍或綠卡問題堪謂幾無可能；但民進黨二十一名政務官皆帶著雙重國籍上任，如今卻可將馬政府綠卡罵到狗血淋頭、無以招架，即知國民黨陷此情境，實有其因應無方及自取其咎之處。

馬政府必須及時從亂局中抽身，一方面要處理危機與控制損害；另一方面更要全力創造正面的題材，引領國人的情感及認知；勿待社會負面的評價一旦形成，那就噬臍莫及了。