What does the decision mean for President Jiang Zemin and his Communist Party?
I think it was interesting how the Communist Party came out and linked itself to the bid. The Communist Party had carefully taken a backseat all along. Their approach was that this was a Beijing city bid, not a national bid. The people who had taken the lead were not recognized senior figures in the Communist Party. But once the announcement was made, not just Jiang Zemin but the entire 20-plus members of the Politburo appeared at the celebrations. Jiang also made a speech to the nation, addressing them as comrades, congratulating the city, and exhorting the people to work hard to make the Games successful.
