As the standup comedian, a rising comedic talent, takes her platform in New York, she is not only thinking about which jokes to tell. She also weighs what subjects to steer clear of. “I refrain from openly attacking the administration,” she stated. And when she does, she makes certain it's not recorded for online platforms. “I would never publicly share material in which I directly criticize authorities … I believe this is a learned behavior acquired back home.”
Wang, 39, lived in Shanghai for nearly a decade, leaving in 2022. By 2025, she relocated to America. When she got there, she dove into a frenzy of “overindulging on freedom,” going to lectures, protests, and exploring the city's public library.
However in the year after the president returned to office for the second time, there has been a “palpable change” in the environment, she says. “In China, I knew where the line was, whereas in the US I'm standing on unstable ground.”
Her concerns reflect a new climate in the US which numerous individuals from China, or people who have lived in China, perceive as eerily similar. Opponents are ostracised. The leader demands total allegiance. Reporters face scrutiny. Establishments are attacked.
The president has openly expressed regarding his respect for China's leader, China’s authoritarian figure. He has described Xi as a “great guy”. As they agreed a temporary truce in the trade war recently, the camaraderie between the two leaders of countries with vastly different governance models was evident. Following years of optimism in America that closer ties with the East could assist the growing nation become more open, in the current administration, it appears that the US is being pulled in the Chinese direction, instead of the other way around.
“America is experiencing a period of societal upheaval,” stated a constitutional law expert, a professor at a top Chinese university. “The president, Trump, is trying to rally the masses to sideline or undermine established figures … reminiscent of events in the country decades past.”
Since the administration unleashed what's termed a government streamlining body, or the agency, on the Washington bureaucracy early on in office, numerous Chinese observers have viewed US politics via the perspective of China's historical period. Whether it is the rallying of young people to execute the leader’s will, or cleansing institutions of those deemed opposition, Trump from a Chinese viewpoint has brought disorder reminiscent of Mao to America, though absent the same levels of violence.
However since the upheaval of the initial period under Trump has calmed, a new, different kind of climate has settled in the US, which variously seems recognizable to many Chinese individuals.
‘The Beacon Is Less Bright’
The most profound similarity between Trump’s America and the East is the crackdown on open expression.
A former police officer, turned CCP critic, found himself in the eye of a storm recently, the likes of which he once faced in China. Deng resided in the US since 2019, having fled the country due to harassment from the authorities.
Last fall, after the death of Charlie Kirk, he posted that the individual was “despicable”. Like people nationwide – many of whom lost their jobs for making negative comments regarding him – he encountered significant backlash. Relatives had personal info leaked and he faced allegations of being a Chinese spy seeking to divide the US.
“That event was a real shock. I never imagined that something like this would occur in the United States – what typically happens in an authoritarian country,” he commented.
Deng’s pile on originated from fellow social media users, rather than the state, but such of public monitoring also has parallels with China.
“In terms of targeting those who disagree and starting to surveil open discourse about issues that are sensitive … It's appearing in the US,” noted Maria Repnikova, a scholar at a US university. “This is that you see in China today as too,” she added, stating that concerns are rising in America of pupils informing against teachers, a form of monitoring promoted by the CCP.
Zhang, the Peking University law professor, said that liberal Chinese intellectuals such as him used to look to America for political inspiration, since openly discussing internal affairs in the country is risky. However, “The US is no longer some kind of god for progressive Chinese. America’s image has worsened across the board.”
“We once viewed the US as the symbol of constitutional democracy, but after Trump took power, that guide seems to have become dimmer”.
Progressive Chinese, typically, at least in private, skeptical about the nation's governance, are increasingly finding it more acceptable than the US's, Zhang said. “It's somewhat painful to accept this reality … but post-COVID, the government appears to be pursuing the right thing in environmental protection and promoting EVs and investing in hi-tech,” Zhang said, while “the West, exemplified by the United States, seems to be in decline.”
The Trump administration’s purchase of stakes in American firms has also drawn comparisons with the East, where the line between state and business is often blurred.
On Monday, authorities announced it would become an investor in a new company focused on rare earth processing, following comparable shares in other companies it considers essential for the country's safety. The deals have made certain stakeholders concerned that the US is entering a fresh phase of government meddling in the private sector.
Yet, there remain significant distinctions between Trump’s America and China. In October, several news organisations among others refused to sign to a defense department rule that demanded they only report on government-authorised news. US courts have blocked or overturned many of Trump’s actions, something that would be unthinkable in China’s party-dominated legal system.
Isaac Stone Fish, who established of a consulting firm, a China-focused advisory firm, commented: “The United States could descend into the worst crisis of its history, far more severe than currently, and it would remain more free, more open, and more liberal than the East under its leader.”
The professor notes that while many intellectuals in China were surprised to see US universities capitulate to official requests concerning DEI policies and free speech on university grounds, in China, leading institutions are all state-owned inherently. University leaders, who are selected by the state, “cannot of saying no. They dare not to be disobedient.”
Still, Americans are starting to adopt measures that were once confined to repressive regimes. An academic at an American college once vocal on bilateral matters declined to be interviewed for this piece. He stated: “The truth is, I fear of suppression in the US: I actually feel less afraid to criticise Xi these days than say anything bad
