Party heavyweights gather in Beidaihe for summer retreat

Xi Jinping and co. are back at the beach.

Some context: Each year, in early August, the Party elite quietly gather at the seaside resort of Beidaihe in Hebei province.

• What they do at the retreat is shrouded in mystery, but it’s thought to involve closed-door meetings to build consensus on key political and policy issues.

On Sunday, Xinhua reported that Cai Qi – Xi’s chief of staff – met with “experts” in Beidaihe.

• That’s probably as close as we’ll ever get to official confirmation that the seaside retreat is taking place.

More context: Beidaihe often sparks speculation that other Party heavyweights will use the retreat to coordinate pushback against Xi’s authority.

Get smart: That ain’t happening.

•  With Xi out of town, CCTV has launched a series of front-page editorials celebrating the big man’s leadership of the Party and crediting him for the economy‘s better-than-expected performance.
• This underscores Xi’s continued dominance over official messaging channels.

Get smarter: With Party leadership kicking it back at the beach, expect a quiet couple of weeks on the policy front.