As Vickie Wang, a rising comedic talent, takes the stage in New York, she is not just considering which jokes to deliver. She also weighs what subjects to steer clear of. “I don't engage in openly criticizing the government,” she explained. Or if she ventures there, she ensures it's not recorded for social media. “I'd never publish openly content where I openly disparage authorities … I think this is a learned behavior from China.”
Wang, thirty-nine, lived in the Chinese metropolis for almost ten years, departing in that year. In 2025, she moved to the US. When she got there, she embarked on a frenzy of “revenge bingeing on democracy,” going to lectures, demonstrations, and delving into the city's public library.
However in the year since the president was elected again, there has been a “palpable change” in the atmosphere, she says. “Back home, I understood the boundaries, while here I find myself on unstable ground.”
Her concerns mirror a new political reality in the US which numerous individuals from China, or those who have lived in China, perceive as eerily familiar. Opponents are ostracised. The leader expects absolute loyalty. Reporters are targeted. Institutions are attacked.
Trump has not been shy regarding his respect for Xi Jinping, the nation's authoritarian figure. He's called Xi as a “great guy”. As they agreed a temporary truce in the trade war recently, the bonhomie between both figures of nations with diametrically opposed governance models became clear. Following years of optimism in America that improved relations with China may help the growing nation to liberalise, under Trump 2.0, it appears as if America is being pulled in China's path, rather than vice versa.
“The United States is undergoing a period of societal upheaval,” stated a constitutional law expert, a professor at Peking University. “The top leader, Donald Trump, is attempting to rally the masses to marginalize or undermine established figures … similar to events in China decades past.”
Since the administration initiated what's termed a government streamlining body, or the agency, on the Washington bureaucracy early on of his term, numerous Chinese observers see US politics via the perspective of China's historical period. Be it the rallying of young people to execute the leader’s will, or purging organizations of those deemed opposition, Trump as viewed from China has delivered disorder reminiscent of Mao to the US, albeit without the same levels of violence.
But since the upheaval of the initial period under Trump subsided, a new, distinct type of political atmosphere has emerged in the country, which in different ways seems familiar to many Chinese people.
‘The Lighthouse Is Dimmer’
The most profound parallel between Trump’s America and the East is the crackdown on free speech.
A former police officer, turned CCP dissenter, ended up in the eye of a storm recently, similar to what he’d only previously experienced in China. Deng resided in the US for several years, after escaping the country because of pressure from the authorities.
In September, after the death of Charlie Kirk, he posted that the individual was a “scumbag”. Like people nationwide – who were fired as a result of making negative comments regarding him – Deng faced significant backlash. Relatives was doxed and he faced allegations of being a Chinese spy attempting to divide the US.
“This incident was a real shock. I never imagined such a thing could happen in America – what typically happens in an authoritarian country,” Deng said.
His backlash came from online peers, rather than the government, but that kind of public monitoring also has parallels with China.
“In terms of targeting those who disagree and monitoring open discourse on topics deemed controversial … It's appearing in the US,” said Maria Repnikova, a scholar at a US university. “This is observed in the East today as well,” she added, adding that there were now fears in America of pupils informing against teachers, a form of monitoring promoted by the CCP.
The professor, the Peking University law professor, said that liberal Chinese intellectuals such as him once turned to America for political inspiration, since public debate on internal affairs in China is dangerous. But now, “The US is no longer a god for progressive Chinese. The US's reputation has worsened generally.”
“We once viewed the US as the symbol of democratic governance, but since the new administration, that guide seems to have become dimmer”.
Progressive Chinese, who are often, at least in private, critical of China’s political system, now perceive it more acceptable than the US's, Zhang said. “It's somewhat difficult to acknowledge this … but post-COVID, the government seems to be doing correct policies in environmental protection and promoting EVs and investing in hi-tech,” Zhang said, while “Western nations, as represented by the United States, appear in decline.”
The government's purchase of stakes in US companies has also drawn comparisons with China, where the distinction between government and business is frequently unclear.
Recently, the US government stated it will take a shareholder in a new company focused on rare earth processing, after taking comparable shares in other companies deemed essential for national security. The deals have left certain stakeholders nervous that America is entering a fresh phase of government meddling in private industry.
There are still major differences between Trump’s America and the East. Last month, multiple media outlets including the Guardian refused to sign to a defense department rule that demanded they only report on approved information. American judiciary have halted or overturned numerous Trump’s actions, something that is impossible in China’s CCP-controlled judiciary.
An analyst, the founder of a consulting firm, a China-focused advisory firm, commented: “America might face its gravest challenge of all time, far more severe than currently, and it would remain more free, more open, and more liberal than the East under its leader.”
The professor observes that although many intellectuals in China were surprised to see American colleges yield to official requests concerning diversity and inclusion practices and open discourse on campus, in China, leading institutions are all state-owned by default. University leaders, who are selected by the state, “cannot refuse. They can’t afford to be disobedient.”
Nevertheless, people in the US are starting to adopt measures previously associated with repressive regimes. An academic at an American college who was previously outspoken on US-China issues declined to be interviewed for this piece. He said: “The truth is, I am scared of suppression here: I actually feel more comfortable to criticise Xi now than say anything bad
