Xi Jinping’s clampdowns herald a tense political year in China

THE TERM “cake theory” has a resonance in China that goes far beyond the kitchen. A decade ago it became shorthand for a fierce debate about the country’s future. There were two opposing camps. One believed that China should focus on making China’s cake—its economy—bigger. The other said the priority should be to share the existing cake more fairly. It was a feud that permeated the febrile politics of China in the build-up to Xi Jinping’s anointment as the Communist Party’s chief in 2012. A powerful advocate of the sharing approach was later accused of plotting a coup.