Xi Jinping's Speech at the Internal Meeting of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee, August 9, 2024

Comrades, as you have all seen, the international community has been in turmoil recently. The student revolution in Bangladesh has succeeded, and our old friend Hasina has fled to India. The movement in Venezuela, as it seems now, will not yield any results because their military is firmly held in the hands of the government. The result of whether one holds military power or not is now starkly laid bare before everyone. I have recently been conducting a major purge of the military, which the outside world calls a great cleansing. Let them say what they want. My goal is only one: to firmly control military power. Without military power, our party would quickly collapse. The successful experience of our party since its founding can be summarized in two points: first, firmly grasp the gun; second, firmly grasp the pen. But, in the end, one must grasp the gun. There are times when the pen is useless, and there are always some people you cannot convince. What to do then? Just hit them, hit them until they submit. Everyone here is a core leader of our party; you must know that managing Chinese people requires the courage to take real action. Cai Qi once said something like "the bayonet must see red," and in fact, he was right. At our level, do not think about issues of morality or immorality; those are things said to the common people. All we need to think about is whether it works or not. Comrade Chen Yun once said, "Chinese people are easy to manage; they won't rebel even if they starve to death." This is the experience summarized by our predecessors, and it is why, even though the Soviet Union collapsed, our Communist Party of China is still alive and becoming stronger. Because no matter how we treat the Chinese common people, they will not resist us. This is the distinction between our party and other ruling Communist parties in the world, and it is our advantage in governing.

The situation is not very optimistic, but there is no need for everyone to be pessimistic. You can look at North Korea, look at Fat Kim's country. On the contrary, it is very stable. Do you know why? Because their people are still not full, and every day they only think about how they can have a full meal. I previously said that Western countries are full all day and have nothing to do, and now that has been posted online as a joke. I think they are also forcing a smile. They are full all day and have nothing to do, so they block roads, splash ink, engage in homosexuality, and introduce Muslims. Their time to cry will come. When I used to go out for work inspections, I loved to lift the lids of the common people's pots. The local government officials all thought I was checking if the people had food at home. They are still too young and ignorant. Of course, this cannot be entirely their fault. At their level, it is impossible for them to think that far. Wang Huning, you have read the most and are the most thoughtful here; tell me, what was I looking at? ... Yes, I was just checking if the Chinese common people were eating too much. If they eat too much, they will cause trouble. Now the outside world criticizes me, calling me some kind of chief economist of China, attempting to pin the blame for China's economic depression on my head. Li Qiang, do you think I should carry this burden? ... You are only half right; I both carry and do not carry this burden. I do not carry it because the previous administrations have already hollowed out China almost completely, and it had reached the brink of having problems; this is a legacy issue, and I cannot be held responsible for historical problems. I carry it because I intentionally let the economy become more depressed, because I realized that the Chinese common people have reached the point of eating too much. If we continue to let them eat too much, they will rise up and rebel. Therefore, I firmly oppose Western-style welfare-ism, such as giving out money, do you all understand? Alright, alright, you are all high-level officials within the party, there is no need for flattery. Go back and digest what I said today. Meeting adjourned.