China's Inevitable Decline: A U.S. Challenge

An implicit social contract underlies the Chinese people's relationship with its government. The people accept the autocratic Communist Party of China (CPC) regime with its corruption and minimal public participation, and the CPC regime delivers a continuous and rapid improvement in the economic standard of living. That social contract is now at risk, as China is on an unsustainable path that will result in economic stagnation or decline in the coming decades.