Chinese Communist Party Chairman Xi Jinping recently sacked General Zhang Youxia, first vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC), and General Liu Zhenli, CMC chief of staff. The CMC is analogous to a combination of America’s Joint Chiefs of Staff and the service secretaries.

To consolidate power Xi often sacks political and military leaders, typically with charges of corruption. Indeed, a recent article carrying a 2023 picture of the CMC’s six-member military leadership. Three have since been expelled and two are on their way. The seventh member is Xi himself.

A couple facets make the most recent sackings particularly interesting. For starters, Zhang, like Xi, is a princeling, party royalty, a descendent of a prominent communist party leader of old. (RELATED: Trump Admin Slams China’s ‘Unjust And Tragic’ Punishment For Anti-CCP Activist)

Also, Zhang and Liu were members of Xi’s inner circle.

And Zhang and Liu had combat experience from the 1979 Sino-Vietnamese war, a rarity in the People’s Liberation Army (PLA).

Zhang and Liu’s downfall is odd for another reason. Under party rules, to expel a member of the CMC, the Commission must meet and vote. It seems no meeting was held.

Further, the CMC had only four members – Xi, Zhang, Liu, and General Zhang Shengmin.  A majority vote is required to expel a CMC member. The vote in this case would have........

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