Communists Tighten Control Over Chinese Government: Report

Communist Party control over the Chinese government is expanding under President Xi Jinping, The Washington Free Beacon is reporting.

The Free Beacon attributed the information to a forthcoming congressional report due to be released soon.

"In one of the most significant developments of 2018, the (Chinese Communist Party) solidified its control over policy in China through what it called the ‘deepen(ing) reform of party and state institutions,'" said a late draft of the report by the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission.

The report notes the Communist Party’s control over China’s 1.4 billion people is increasing along with the “party-ification” of the government.

"The increase in party control over governmental functions coincided with the additional consolidation of President Xi's control over the party," the report states.

China’s Communist Party recently seized control of some government agencies that had been part of the Chinese state, the Free Beacon reported.

And the expansion of power by the Communist Party has also sparked an increase in Chinese influence operations through its United Front Work Department,

"As the CCP has consolidated power over many aspects of Chinese society, President Xi has expanded the role of the United Front Work Department (UFWD), a powerful party entity responsible for securing the political support of or otherwise co-opting non-CCP entities within China and among the Chinese diaspora in foreign countries, including the United States," the report says.

Earlier this year, Chinese lawmakers approved changes in the country’s constitution abolishing term limits for the president. The change means Xi could rule the nation indefinitely, according to NPR.

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