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Japan PM woes persist before vote, party in disarray
Tue Jul 14, 2009 3:05am EDT
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By Chisa Fujioka
TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's ruling bloc voted down a no-confidence motion against embattled Prime Minister Taro Aso on Tuesday, but chaos deepened within his party as fears grew of a historic defeat in a national election next month.
A loss for Aso's coalition in the August 30 general election would end a half-century of nearly unbroken rule by the pro-business ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), struggling to revive the economy with massive stimulus spending.
The LDP's woes have raised the chances of the opposition Democratic Party taking control of the lower house and breaking policy deadlocks in parliament, where opposition parties already control the upper chamber and can delay bills.
The Democrats, trying to make the most of the LDP's falling popularity before the election, submitted a no-confidence motion in the lower house against Aso's cabinet by criticizing its economic policies.
"The cabinet has been spending large amounts of money for the economy but we can only think that it was aimed at winning support for the election," said Democratic Party leader Yukio Hatoyama. "The measures won't improve people's livelihoods."
As expected, the motion was rejected by the ruling bloc's majority. The Democrats hoped that by forcing LDP lawmakers to back Aso, it would make it harder for his critics in the party to persist in trying to dump him ahead of the election.
Alarmed by falling public support for Aso, lawmakers in the long-ruling party have openly called for him to quit ahead of the election and bring forward a vote for the party leadership set for September.
PARTY DISARRAY
Former LDP Secretary-General Hidenao Nakagawa repeated calls for a leadership change, but Aso has refused to quit.
"We must fight now and it is as a matter of course that we fight united," Aso told a meeting of lawmakers.
"Unless we are united, we won't be able to fight well."
Japan has had four LDP leaders in four years, and voters may not be impressed with another change at the top. The party lacks an obvious successor who could guarantee a jump in popularity and boost the LDP's chances in the national poll.
Japan's opposition-controlled upper house is expected to adopt a non-binding but embarrassing censure motion against Aso later on Tuesday.
The opposition is not without its own headaches after party leader Yukio Hatoyama apologized for the fact that some people listed as his political donors were dead.
The Democrats' ambitious spending plans have also come under scrutiny from financial analysts, with some saying policies such as cash allowances for families and free highway tolls could push up bond yields. Continued...
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