In the coming weeks, every major Western newspaper and many top China analysts will be making strong claims about Chinese leader Xi Jinping's political position in the wake of the 19th Party Congress. These reports will build off years of tea-leaf reading and Pekingology that collectively underpin a now familiar story of élite political strife met by Xi's personal consolidation of power. Their accounts will end either with Xi “solidifying his dominance” or “succumbing to the countervailing forces of his rivals”—and they will project an air of certainty.
Read Full Article »
