The truly violent nature of the US neoliberal bipartisan political establishment is revealed in its commitment to funding racist, militarized police forces above funding healthcare & housing. The same ones who scoff at “defund police” also scoff at funding universal healthcare 1/

They put immense energy toward maintaining a veneer of “civility” by wearing high-priced suits, adhering to a certain decorum with one another & engaging in performative governance. But their policies, words & actions reflect the truly violent nature of their character. 2/
These are people who see little distinction between property & human life, particularly the lives of the poor, nonwhite &/or marginalized. It’s not surprising—given that this is the value system of those who established the nation in the first place,... 3/
...that those most comfortable in the modern day establishment would share this same general viewpoint.

These are not individuals who oppose violence in principle but who instead want to monopolize the use of violence in their roles as gov’t officials & the political class. 4/
What ultimately made the Trump era disruptive to the bipartisan establishment wasn’t racism or violence—the establishment upholds both & he still enjoys support from the majority of Republicans and white voters—but that there was no veneer of civility. 5/
Even now, the bipartisan establishment is above all else concerned w/ its own self-preservation in aftermath of 45.

The performance of the inauguration matters b/c the “peaceful transition of power” has long been held as evidence of American exceptionalism & bipartisanship. 6/
John Lewis faced criticism for refusing to attend Trump’s inauguration while most of the bipartisan establishment went thru the motions of pretending it was normal. Trump now threatens to disrupt things & further damage the veneer of civility by refusing to attend Biden’s. 7/
But regardless of how inauguration plays out for the bipartisan establishment, for millions in America there will be no peaceful transition. They will be tossed from their homes by the same militarized police forces the establishment chooses to fund instead of funding housing. 8/
There is no such thing as a peaceful transition into poverty.

There is only the violence of being forced to go hungry while leaders of the bipartisan establishment enjoy lavish meals, housing & healthcare funded by the same tax payers they’re abandoning to illness & debt. 9/
It’s dangerous to look only at theatrical performances of peace & democracy w/o examining the system of brutality underlying it—or the violent nature of those overseeing & administering it, no matter how politically skillful they are at masking it with charm & “civility.” 10/10

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THREAD: Who are the rising stars of Chinese elite politics in the central Party-State bureaucracy?

For @MacroPoloChina I analyzed last year's ministerial-level promotions to posts in Beijing

TLDR: Ties to Xi Jinping—or a Xi ally—are very helpful! (1/14)

https://t.co/kO2A0Efyq2


Seven politicians were promoted to ministerial-level positions in central Party agencies last year

All are likely to feature on the next Central Committee selected at the 2022 Party Congress

Some could make the CCP's elite 25-person Politburo (2/14)

https://t.co/kO2A0Efyq2


Likeliest for the Politburo is Meng Xiangfeng, new Executive Deputy Director of the CCP General Office

He would replace Xi ally Ding Xuexiang as CCP chief-of-staff if Ding is promoted further in 2022

Meng worked under Xi allies Cai Qi in Hangzhou and Chen Xi in Liaoning (3/14)


Less likely for the Politburo but still important is Jiang Jinquan, new Director of the CCP Policy Research Office

He replaces 5th-ranked leader Wang Huning who led the Party's brains trust for 18 years

Wang remains prominent and will be <68 in 2022, so he'll stay around (4/14)


Other notable central Party promotions include Li Shulei and Liang Yanshun, who both assisted Xi when he led the Central Party School from 2007-2012

Li is a political conservative who is said to be quite close with Xi, even drafting his 2014 speech on culture and art (5/14)

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