BEIJING, CHINA -OCTOBER 12: Party members stand by an image showing Chinese President Xi Jinping as they listen to a guide at an exhibition highlighting Xi's years as leader, as part of the upcoming 2
BEIJING, CHINA -OCTOBER 12: Party members stand by an image showing Chinese President Xi Jinping as they listen to a guide at an exhibition highlighting Xi's years as leader, as part of the upcoming 20th Party Congress, on October 12, 2022 in Beijing, China. The ruling Communist Party of China will open its 20th Party Congress on October 16th and Xi Jinping is widely expected to secure a third term in power.
Instead, Xi has indelibly changed the party and the country, including escalating tensions with democratic countries and building a Mao-like cult of personality that had been carefully discouraged among his predecessors. As Johnson put it, “It’s like if you bring in someone to fix a problem, and before you know it they are running the whole show and have kicked you out.”
Xi’s father was a top party official under Mao Zedong, the CCP’s founder and head for nearly three decades. But this position of privilege did not mean Xi’s family was spared Mao’s wrath. During the Cultural Revolution, Xi’s father, like many other party officials, was swept up in purges as Mao sought to forestall any challenges to his power.
Xi may not be solely responsible for today’s tensions between the U.S. and China — from trade and free speech disputes to issues over sovereignty in places like Hong Kong and Taiwan — but he can be seen as a significant driver of them.