Constitutional conflict between Taiwan's Executive Yuan and Legislative Yuan has flared up again — bad news for political stability and for moving legislation forward.

• The Executive Yuan plans to refuse to countersign bills passed on third reading by the Legislative Yuan, which would effectively block their promulgation.
• The KMT caucus said that Han Kuo-yu had only just brokered passage of the central government's general budget as a gesture of goodwill, and that the Lai administration immediately escalated the confrontation.
• The dispute turns on the Constitution: when a bill reaches the president, the text says it "shall" be promulgated within ten days — it is not a matter of personal discretion.
• The KMT argues that if the Executive Yuan finds a bill unworkable, it should seek a reconsideration vote rather than invent a veto power of its own.

Outlook: With the governing and opposition camps offering competing accounts of the promulgation process, there is no sign of this constitutional tug-of-war ending soon; a constitutional interpretation or political negotiation may be needed to break the deadlock.