In the animated series Jackie Chan Adventures, the wise Uncle always had a way of breaking the villains’ spells with the phrase, “To defeat magic, use magic.” The essence of this is “fighting fire with fire.”

In mid-January, the Blue-White coalition, leveraging their majority in the legislature, placed what they called the “most stringent” shackles in history on the central government’s 2025 national budget, declaring, “If you can’t do the job, let someone else do it,” with the apparent intent to slash every so-called “unjust” expenditure. By mid-July, during the height of the recall campaign, the magic wand of “returning taxes to the people” was waved with equal fervor, demanding that the central government distribute surplus tax revenue directly to citizens, chanting “10,000 NT dollars in cash for everyone.”

Many rational voices in society attempted to explain the positive correlation between budget growth and economic development, and the necessity of using surplus tax revenue for debt repayment and infrastructure investment. However, after the failure of the recall campaign, we must face a reality: these rational “explanatory notes” had little effect against the high-decibel political incantations of the Blue-White bloc. So let us take up the magic wand they have offered—and invite them to lead by example.

First Spell: The “Record-High Budget” Offense.

By the Blue-White’s own logic, if a “record-high” budget is a crime, then slashing tens of billions from “operational expenses” should be no problem—“if you can’t do it, let someone else do it.” A quick look at the budget reports of all major counties and cities governed by the KMT shows that every one of them has a record-high budget for 2025. There’s no need to argue—just follow the Blue-White’s own magical principles and urge KMT-led local governments to take the lead in cutting or eliminating their own “operational expenses” to show their citizens they truly “get things done.”

Second Spell: The Justice of “Returning Taxes to the People.”

Statistics show that in the four major municipalities under KMT governance:

• Taipei City has over-collected NT$46.4 billion in taxes, enough to give each resident about NT$18,000.

• New Taipei City: NT$20 billion, about NT$5,000 per resident.

• Taichung City: NT$11.3 billion, about NT$4,000 per resident.

• Taoyuan City: NT$6.8 billion, about NT$3,000 per resident.

So, mayors Chiang Wan-an, Hou You-yi, Lu Shiow-yen, and Chang San-cheng—where are your citizens’ cash bonuses?

The most ironic of all is Taichung’s Mayor Lu Shiow-yen, who shouted the slogan “Give the people back their money” louder than anyone else, yet her city government actually sued netizens who expressed a desire for “universal cash handouts” online—perfectly exposing the hollow hypocrisy of this magic trick.

Third Spell: The Ultimate Trial of “Nuclear Waste Is No Problem.”

The Blue-White bloc loves nuclear power, and nuclear waste storage is, in their words, “not a problem.” Legislator Hsu Chiao-hsin is practically the “High Priestess” of this spell, boldly declaring, “Nuclear waste can be stored at my home.” Then why not designate Taipei’s Songxin District as a “Demonstration Zone for Upgraded Nuclear Waste Management”? Furthermore, the counties and cities with the highest “yes” vote counts in the nuclear power referendum should be given priority as sites for the final disposal of nuclear waste or for the construction of new nuclear plants.

The true meaning of “defeating magic with magic” lies in exposing the fragility and double standards in the opponent’s logic. Blue-White politicians wielded their magic wand to secure a crushing victory in the recall campaign—so when will their own performance begin?