Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin used to remove rivals by having them secretly murdered and then “disappeared” from earlier group photos. On Sunday, the newly installed Communist emperor of China bloodlessly dispatched his predecessor by having him physically escorted from the main stage during the closing session of the 20th Party Congress.

Reportedly, Hu Jintao, who ruled the People’s Republic for 10 years, was about to use that platform to warn against the then-impending concentration of power in Xi Jinping’s hands. The party line, however, is that he was experiencing some sort of medical emergency. It was clear from Hu’s stricken reaction to his unwilling departure, though, that he knew he was heading to the gulag — not an urgent care facility.

That’s a tell regarding what to expect from a Xi Jinping unleashed. The trouble is he is intent on disappearing America, too.

This is Frank Gaffney.