China Times Editorial (Taipei, Taiwan, ROC)
A Translation
May 22, 2015
Executive Summary: Tsai Ing-wen has long been known as "kong xin Cai" or "content-free Tsai" because she has refused to clearly state her political views. Meanwhile, her speeches, discussions, or articles are filled with pretty words such as "equal justice", "progressive values", "citizen participation", "Taiwan First!", "The People", and "democracy". More recently, she has held forth on "regional governance", "generational justice", "the new economy", "the new agriculture", "creativity", and "innovation". Her rhetoric has remained theoretical. Little if any of it can be translated into concrete policy. Her rhetoric has remained at the "communications platform" level. It has yet to coalesce into a real program with cost-benefit analysis.
Full Text Below:
Tsai Ing-wen has long been known as "kong xin Cai" or "content-free Tsai" because she has refused to clearly state her political views. Meanwhile, her speeches, discussions, or articles are filled with pretty words such as "equal justice", "progressive values", "citizen participation", "Taiwan First!", "The People", and "democracy". More recently, she has held forth on "regional governance", "generational justice", "the new economy", "the new agriculture", "creativity", and "innovation". Her rhetoric has remained theoretical. Little if any of it can be translated into concrete policy. Her rhetoric has remained at the "communications platform" level. It has yet to coalesce into a real program with cost-benefit analysis.
"Content-free Tsai" did not acquire her nickname overnight. When Tsai Ing-wen first became party chairperson, progressive scholars flocked to her. They had high hopes for this old style bureaucrat who hailed from academia and the civil service system. They saw in her qualities atypical of politicians. They imagined her transformed into a new era progressive politician. Many pinned their hopes of transforming old politics into new politics on her.
Content-free Tsai's story has a second chapter. When the aura around the DPP's four party princes began to fade, Tsai Ing-wen became the DPP savior. She began her ascent to the summit of power. Avoidance of conflict and pandering to voters became Tsai Ing-wen's guiding light. This, needless to say, merely reinforced her "Content-free Tsai" image.
Content-free Tsai's story is now in its third chapter, namely, her "final mile". In contrast to 2012, Tsai Ing-wen is almost certain to win the campaign ahead of us. The DPP already sees itself as the "ruling party elect" at the central government level, in addition to being the ruling party in most local jurisdictions. It sees the Kuomintang and voters through these glasses. As a "ruling party elect " presidential candidate, Tsai Ing-wen now finds it difficult to maintain her conflict avoidance motivated policy ambiguity. She finds herself compelled to respond to voter questions and voter expectations. As a result, Tsai Ing-wen has gradually issued a series of policy checks. The first pertains to cross-Strait policy.
Tsai Ing-wen says the DPP's basis for cross-Strait relations is "maintaining the cross-Strait status quo", in other words, maintaining peace across the Taiwan Strait and the continued development of cross-Strait relations. According to Tsai Ing-wen this is the key to cross-Strait relations, and the DPP goal upon returning to power. She assures us that "The DPP is confident in its ability to handle cross-Strait relations and avoid accidents. It will not stir up opposition, conflicts, and confrontation."
The moment she uttered "maintaining the status quo", everyone was baffled. They wanted to know Tsai Ing-wen's definition of the "cross-Strait status quo". They wanted to know why she wanted it maintained. Over the past month people have learned what Tsai Ing-wen means by the status quo. It means "follow and uphold the United States' definition of the status quo". From the DPP's anti-Mainland standpoint, such a position is relatively stable. On the surface it avoids the mistakes that earned Chen Shui-bian the moniker of "trouble maker".
But this is clearly an unbalanced and dangerous policy. DPP cross-Strait policy would fall victim to short-term fluctuations in Sino-US relations. It would greatly increase friction, disagreement, and conflict between Taipei and Beijing. In the long run, it may not even be in the best interests of the United States. In sum, Tsai's has proposed a cross-Strait policy riddled with uncertainty.
Tsai Ing-wen's social and economic policies are rife with contradictions and dangers as well. Recently, when Tsai Ing-wen visited the Changhua Coastal Industrial Park, she declared that "Taiwan has too many holidays", and touched off a wave of controversy. According to reports Tsai Ing-wen was addressing a business group. Therefore she first assured them that she was not anti-business, that she was concerned no only with industrial workers and farmers, that she had no objection to FTAs, that she did not support the luxury homes tax, capital gains tax, and sin taxes. She assured them that her commitment to equal justice would not undermine her commitment to efficiency and competitiveness. When Tsai Ing-wen addresses entrepreneurs she boasts about suppressing labor welfare to maintain industrial competitiveness. Meanwhile, she also trumpets her commitment to "progress" and "justice".
Tsai Ing-wen has recently talked up a "new model for economic growth". She advocates a "from small to big" industrial strategy. She says the primary force behind next generation economic growth is SMEs, not Big Business. She says it is people with smarts, not traditional capitalists. She says knowledge and innovation are more important than capital. Therefore "Taiwan's economic development can no longer rely exclusively on traditional capitalists and the wealthy." Frankly, Tsai Ing-wen's "new economic growth model" is a hodge-podge of anti-Big Business sentiment, "small is beautiful" philosophy, green economics, and new economics. It has no connection to the reality of the global economy. It runs counter to the development strategies of the world's major nations. It reveals total incomprehension regarding the relationship between Big Business and SMEs. Such an economic policy is utterly divorced from reality. It promises false equality and false progress.
When Tsai Ing-wen addresses middle class, lower class, and underprivileged voters, she invariably talks about national responsibility and distributive justice. When she addresses environmental groups she invariably promises a nuclear-free homeland by 2025, 50 billion Kilowatt hours of green electricity in 10 years, the establishment of a smart grid, and measures to save 30 billion Kilowatt hours of energy in 10 years. Alas, she never tells us the source of the revenue. She never says anything about overall fiscal reform. These are her "irresponsible leftist policies". When Tsai addresses business groups, she objects to tax increases, questions shorter working hours, stresses market economics, market efficiency, and market competition. These are her "dishonest rightist policies."
Uncertain cross-Strait policies, irresponsible leftist policies, and dishonest rightist policies. These are the rubber checks Tsai Ing-wen has issued. Can the people and the international community really trust such a person?
開了太多浮誇支票的民進黨
2015年05月22日 中國時報
很長一段時間以來，蔡英文被稱為「空心蔡」，
「空心蔡」不是一朝一夕形成的。蔡英文擔任黨主席之初，一批批「
「空心蔡」的故事還有第二階段。
「空心蔡」故事演化的第三階段，就是此刻這「最後一哩路」。比起
蔡英文說，民進黨處理兩岸關係的基本原則，就是「維持兩岸現狀」
「維持現狀論」一出，
然而，這卻清清楚楚是一種「失衡」的危險政策，
至於蔡英文的社會經濟政策，更是充滿矛盾與危險。日前，
這段時間以來，蔡英文喜歡談「新經濟成長模式」，說要確認一個「
蔡英文面對中下階層與弱勢群體時，
「不確定的兩岸政策」、「不負責的左派政策」和「
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