As the lockdown of Shanghai and outbreaks in Beijing and elsewhere batter the economy, China’s leader keeps a distance from the politically charged issue. A worker registering for a Covid test on Thursday in Beijing, where lockdowns so far have targeted individual buildings or streets, unlike in Shanghai. Credit…Kevin Frayer/Getty Images China’s leader, Xi Jinping, waved at crowds of giddily cheering students. He held meetings with Olympic Games officials , economic policymakers and European leaders . He toured a tropical island . But there was a revealing gap in Mr. Xi’s busy itinerary last month, exposing the predicament that Covid is creating in a politically crucial year when he hopes to extend his hold on power. He stayed behind the scenes when it came to China’s biggest, most contentious lockdown since the pandemic began. Throughout April, Mr. Xi gave no public speeches focused on outbreaks in China as its […]