Word: ldp
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Fukuda's likely successor is Taro Aso, the popular former Minister of Foreign Affairs. The hope is that Aso can not only rekindle the office's appeal but, much more importantly, help break gridlock in parliament, where the LDP heads a coalition in the lower house of the Japanese Diet. Fukuda reshuffled his Cabinet last month to install Aso in the No. 2 spot as the secretary general of Liberal Democratic Party...
...Upper and Lower Houses of the Diet have been paralyzed for more than a year now. In July 2007, the LDP lost the majority it held for five decades in the Upper House to the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ), the opposition party. Since then, Japanese politics has been rife with indecision. The government has been paralyzed by issues ranging from the appointment of a central bank governor to an antiterrorism refueling mission in the Indian Ocean. Tack on a scandal over millions of dollars in lost pensions, a resumption of the gas tax, higher health insurance premiums...
Fukuda has not said when his resignation takes effect. But if the LDP elects Aso as president, the expectation is that the much-more appealing leadership could restore confidence in the party and help it win the general elections that needs to take place before Sept. 2009. Aso is a political golden boy, in spite of his 67 years, who is known for his love of manga or Japanese-style comic books. Some consider him destined for the top office, given his array of personal ties to former prime ministers and to the Imperial family itself (His brother...
Winning the general election is key for the LDP. Divisions between the party and its main coalition partner, the New Komeito party, have been growing. New Komeito is upset at being saddled with an unpopular Prime Minister as well as disapproving of a few of his cabinet choices and wants parliament dissolved in to come up with a whole new government. The DPJ is also pressing for an early dissolution because, it says, Fukuda "threw the administration away" by resigning so soon. Seiji Maehara, vice president of the DPJ, says, "The LDP people hope Aso will be in power...
...then there are the troublesome T's: Taiwan and Tibet. "Clearly Hu Jintao would like the Japanese to line up and say that they oppose Taiwan's independence, but there's too much opposition to that from within the LDP," says Curtis of Columbia University. Experts expect Fukuda will go no further than stressing the importance of a peaceable resolution. While Fukuda may be able to manage the dialogue on Taiwan, it will be harder to control the Japanese public. A rash of pro-Tibet demonstrations by the country's Buddhists could embarrass Hu, who has been trying to quell...