Re: meaning please ..
[#permalink]
18 Jun 2012, 23:59
Well, first of all, this is a poorly constructed sentence, and you will never (in my opinion) see something like this on the GMAT.
That said, here is the meaning:
"I would never have guessed that, this spring, he would be expelled, accused of corruption, his wife investigated for murder, that rumors would swirl of his spying on members of the Politburo, on President Hu Jintao himself."
I would never have guessed that, this spring = this clause introduces the person who is discussing the controversy. he mentions that the controversy occurred in the spring season.
he = some guy.
would be expelled, accused of corruption, his wife investigated for murder, that rumors would swirl of his spying on members of the Politburo, on President Hu Jintao himself = the stuff he did:
1) he was expelled from the Party
2) he was accused of corruption
3) his wife was investigated for murder
4) rumors swirled that he spied on members of the Politburo. In fact, rumors even swirled that he spied in the President!
By the way, for all non-native speakers of English, this is a great example of why you should be voraciously reading the WSJ and NY Times for your news. The prose in those newspapers closely aligns with the prose you'll be expected to understand on the GMAT.