Xi Jinping, a Chinese politician who has served as the general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party since 2012, has espoused views on numerous issues. Xi identifies as a Marxist and has declared socialism with Chinese characteristics to be the "only correct path to realize national rejuvenation."
Politics
Chinese Dream
Xi and CCP ideologues coined the phrase "Chinese Dream" to describe his overarching plans for China as its leader. Xi first used the phrase during a high-profile visit to the National Museum of China on 29 November 2012, where he and his Politburo Standing Committee colleagues were attending a "national revival" exhibition. Since then, the phrase has become the signature political slogan of the Xi era. The origin of the term "Chinese Dream" is unclear. While the phrase has been used before by journalists and scholars, some publications have posited the term likely drew its inspiration from the concept of the American Dream. The Economist noted the abstract and seemingly accessible nature of the concept with no specific overarching policy stipulations may be a deliberate departure from the jargon-heavy ideologies of his predecessors. Xi has linked the "Chinese Dream" with the phrase "great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation".
Ideology
Xi has said that "only socialism can save China." Xi has also declared socialism with Chinese characteristics to be the "only correct path to realize national rejuvenation." According to BBC News, while the CCP was perceived to have abandoned its communist ideology since it initiated economic reforms in the 1970s, Xi is believed by some observers to be more believing in the "idea of a communist project", and was described as a Marxist–Leninist by former Australian prime minister Kevin Rudd. In June 2013, he said:In our team of cadres, some are skeptical about communism, considering it an illusory and hard-to-reach fantasy. Some don't believe in Marx and Lenin but in ghosts and gods. They seek spiritual sustenance from feudal superstitions and are obsessed with fortune telling. They worship Buddha and seek "god's advice'' if in trouble. Some have faint concepts of right and wrong. They lack strong principles. Their morality degenerates. They perform their official duties mindlessly and muddle through their lives. Some even yearn for Western social [i.e., political] institutions and values, losing confidence in the future of socialism. Some maintain an ambivalent attitude toward political provocations against matters of principle such as the leadership of the Party and the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics. They shy away passively, not daring to unsheathe their sword, blur their position deliberately, respond connivingly and the like. Isn't it utterly absurd that leading party cadres and especially senior cadres display no attitude toward major principles, and in the face of political incidents and sensitive issues, take up no position and are indifferent?Xi's emphasis on prioritizing ideology has included re-asserting the Party's goal of eventually realizing communism and reprimanding those who dismiss communism as impractical or irrelevant. Xi described the communist ideal as the "calcium" in a Party member's spine, without which the Party member would suffer the "osteoporosis" of political decay and be unable to stand upright. In 2014, Xi said:Belief in Marxism and a faith in socialism and communism is the political soul and spiritual pillar of a Communist, enabling them to withstand all test. To put it more vividly, ideals and convictions are the spiritual calcium of Communists, and if these ideals and convictions are missing or irresolute, then there is a lack of spiritual calcium that leads to soft bone disease. This has proved true by the cases of some Party members and officials who acted improperly due to lack of ideals and confused faith.
Xi has spoken out against "historical nihilism", meaning historical viewpoints that challenge the official line of the CCP. Xi said that one of the reasons for the collapse of the Soviet Union has been historical nihilism. Xi showed great interest in why the Soviet Union dissolved, and how to avoid that failure in China:Why did the Soviet Union disintegrate? Why did the Communist Party of the Soviet Union fall from power? An important reason was that the struggle in the field of ideology was extremely intense, completely negating the history of the Soviet Union, negating the history of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, negating Lenin, negating Stalin, creating historical nihilism and confused thinking. Party organs at all levels had lost their functions, the military was no longer under Party leadership. In the end, the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, a great party, was scattered, the Soviet Union, a great socialist country, disintegrated. This is a cautionary tale!
Xi also blamed the dissolution of the Soviet Union on governance, stating the Communist Party of the Soviet Union had "separated itself from the people and became a privileged bureaucratic group that only protected its own interests".
He also said the road to communism would involve twists and turns:Marx said, "no social norm will disappear before all its potential productive capacity have been brought into play; just like a new and more advanced production relation definitely will not appear until the material conditions of its existence in the old society have matured:' This important argument he made can help us understand why capitalism has yet to be completely vanquished; why socialism experienced the twists and turns of the disintegration of the Soviet Union and the turmoil of Eastern Europe; why Marxism foresaw a long historical path to reach communism. Once people fully grasp this and the methodology and scientific outlook for learning social evolution, we will be able to fix the centerpiece of our ideal, entrench the anchor-stone of our belief, and sustain strategic stability and resilience. We must reaffirm our confidence in the socialist road, the socialist theory, and the socialist system, and continuously raise the level of productivity in society and the living conditions of the people. Doing so will enable our socialist system to get rich and reveal its superiority, and broaden the pathway for our socialist road.In support of his view that it is important to "enhance Party cadres' and members' belief in Marxism and communism, their belief in socialism with Chinese characteristics, and their confidence in the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation," Xi established the Museum of the Communist Party of China, which opened in June 2021. Xi has called for the further Sinicization of Marxism, referring to adapting Marxism to the Chinese context. In July 2021, he formulated the Two Integrations, calling for integrating Marxism with China's specific conditions and China's traditional culture. Xi has called on CCP members to "remain true to our original aspiration", meaning to work for the happiness and well-being of the Chinese people and the rejuvenation of China, and launched an educational campaign for that goal from 2019 to 2020. Xi has rejected Westernization as the only way to modernize, instead promoting what he says is Chinese modernization. He has identified five concepts as part of Chinese-style modernization, including modernization of a huge population, common prosperity, material and cultural-ethical advancement, harmony between humanity and nature, and peaceful development. He has rejected adopting the Western political model:Since the end of the Cold War, some countries afflicted by Western values have been in turmoil: some have been torn to pieces, some have been plunged into wars, others are in a constant state of disarray. If we tailor our practices to the Western capitalist value system or measure China's development against the Western capitalist evaluation system-in other words, upholding the Western standard as the sole standard, and repudiating deviations from it as backward and obsolete-I dread to contemplate the consequences! We will either trail behind slavishly or subject to abuse.
The leading role of the CCP Xi has supported maintaining and further strengthening CCP's comprehensive leadership over all sectors of society, saying "government, the military, society and schools, north, south, east and west – the party leads them all." During the 100th anniversary of the CCP in 2021, he said that "without the Communist Party of China, there would be no new China and no national rejuvenation," and that "the leadership of the Party is the defining feature of socialism with Chinese characteristics and constitutes the greatest strength of this system." Xi stated:Any malicious attempt to separate the Chinese Communist Party from the Chinese people or to pit them against each other will never succeed! The Chinese communists of over 95 million will not agree! The Chinese population of over 1.4 billion will also not agree!Regarding modern history, Xi emphasizes focusing on "understand why the Chinese Communist Party can, why Marxism works, and why socialism is good". He considers the CCP to be the "only logical option" for China that was "chosen by history and the people". Xi has said that China, despite many setbacks, has achieved great progress under the CCP, saying that "Today there are about 130 socialist or communist parties active in 100 countries. Many developing countries look at China with envy and want to learn about our governance experience. Socialism with Chinese characteristics has become the standard-bearer of 21st-century socialist development." He said:China's success proves that socialism is not dead. It is thriving. Just imagine this: had socialism failed in China, had our communist party collapsed like the party in the Soviet Union, then global socialism would lapse into a long Dark Age. And communism, like Karl Marx once said, would be a haunting spectre lingering in limbo.However, he has also warned that it will take a long time for China under the CCP to complete its rejuvenation, and during this timeframe, party members must be vigilant to not let CCP rule collapse: "During this long period, how can we ensure that the Communist Party will not collapse and our political system will maintain its vigour? [It] is going to be a huge challenge and risk". In another speech in 2022, Xi said that the way to escape China's historical cycles of dynastic rise and falls and prevent "the Party from collapsing when its leaders die" is to engage in self-revolution, which he defines as to "strengthen the Party's foundation, detoxify and sterilize, make tough decisions, eliminate corruption and promote tissue regeneration, constantly eliminate the viruses that erode the Party's healthy body, constantly improve its own immunity".
In another speech, Xi has said that "our party is so large, and our country, so huge–it is such that if the Party Central lacks the sole authority to make decisions, nothing can be achieved", comparing the Party Central to the CCP's "cerebrum" and the "central nervous system", and said it "should have the sole authority in making decisions". However, he has also criticized officials that do not work without central directives, stating "if I do not write comments on reports, no work gets done." Regarding the central role of the party, Xi said in 2014: