In China, the vice premier for the economy, Wang Qishan, said on November 21st that "global economic conditions remain grim".
In Chinese domestic politics, Hu had wanted Vice Premier Li Keqiang from the Communist Youth League to emerge as his successor, not Vice President Xi Jinping, but Hu did his calculations and accepted Xi when it became clear that Xi had the necessary backing from the rest of the leadership.
"And this elite, from the vice premier to the governors, they are even closer to the Soviet way of visualizing this problem.
The other honesty-eruption came from Chinese Vice Premier Wang Qishan, who was in Washington for talks, and spoke to Charlie Rose, a rare appearance by a Chinese official in an unscripted American media venue.
The brother of Chinese Vice Premier Li Keqiang should be removed from his post as a top official in China's state-owned tobacco monopoly to avoid conflicts of interest, according to a report published by the Washington-based Brookings Institution in October.
She got a hand from the vice premier of China, who pulled strings so she could set up her business as a foreign entity without taking on a state-owned partner.
Vice Premier Chiou I-jen also resigned from the cabinet, a day after he left the Democratic Progressive Party and said he would retire from politics.
"I humbly request that the vice premier lead and coordinate the matter from a higher level," Ma Mingzhe, chairman of Ping An, implored in a letter to Mr. Wen that was reviewed by The New York Times.
After Mr. Bo was removed from that post, Zhang Dejiang, a vice premier and ally of Jiang Zemin, was sent to Chongqing as a caretaker party chief.
Chinese leaders have not forgotten how Zhu Rongji, with a similarly deep background, managed to dominate economic policy making from his position as executive vice premier in the mid-1990s.
