Xi Channels Mao in Vision for China's Future While Consolidating Power
• Xi links "Chinese modernization" to Mao's legacy to position himself as an extension of Mao • Xi touts "Chinese modernization" as an alternative to Western capitalist models • Xi consolidating power to levels not seen since Mao; lack of checks and balances worries investors • Xi praised with title "leader," previously only used for Mao, drawing personality cult comparisons • Xi reiterates China's position that Taiwan "must and is bound to be reunified" with the mainland