When the standup comedian, a rising performer, takes the stage in New York, she's not only thinking about which jokes to tell. Additionally, she carefully considers which topics to avoid. “I refrain from openly attacking the administration,” she explained. And when she ventures there, she makes certain it isn't recorded for online platforms. “I'd never publicly share content where I openly disparage authorities … I think this is a learned behavior acquired back home.”
The comedian, 39, resided in Shanghai for nearly ten years, departing in 2022. By 2025, she moved to America. Upon arrival, she dove into a frenzy of “overindulging on democracy,” going to lectures, demonstrations, and delving into the city's public library.
However over the past year after the president was elected for the second time, there's been a noticeable shift in the atmosphere, she says. “In China, I understood the boundaries, whereas here I find myself on unstable ground.”
Wang’s fears reflect a new political reality in the US which many Chinese, or people who have lived in China, perceive as disturbingly familiar. Opponents are ostracised. The leader expects absolute loyalty. Reporters face scrutiny. Establishments come under fire.
The president has openly expressed regarding his respect for China's leader, China’s strongman leader. He's called him as “fantastic”. When they reached a temporary truce in the trade war recently, the camaraderie between the two leaders of nations with vastly different political systems became clear. And after decades of optimism in the US that improved relations with China may help the growing nation become more open, under Trump 2.0, it appears as if the US is shifting in China's path, rather than vice versa.
“America is undergoing an era of societal upheaval,” said Zhang Qianfan, an academic at Peking University. “The top leader, Donald Trump, is trying to mobilise the masses in order to sideline or undermine the elite … similar to what happened in China half a century ago.”
Since the administration initiated what's termed Department for Government Efficiency, or the agency, on federal institutions early on of his term, numerous Chinese observers see US politics via the perspective of the Cultural Revolution. Be it the mobilisation of young people to execute presidential directives, or cleansing organizations of those deemed opposition, the president as viewed from China has delivered Mao-style chaos to the US, though without the same levels of violence.
But after the upheaval of the initial period under Trump has calmed, a new, distinct type of political atmosphere has emerged in the country, which in different ways seems familiar to numerous Chinese individuals.
‘The Lighthouse Is Dimmer’
The most profound similarity between Trump’s America and the East is the crackdown on free speech.
Deng Haiyan, now a CCP critic, ended up in the eye of a storm recently, the likes of which he once faced in China. He resided in the US for several years, after escaping the country because of harassment from the authorities.
In September, following the passing of Charlie Kirk, he posted that Kirk was “despicable”. Similar to others across the US – many of whom were fired for making negative comments regarding him – he encountered a huge backlash. His family was doxed and he was accused of espionage attempting to create division.
“This incident was a real shock. I hadn't thought that something like this would occur in America – what should only happen in an authoritarian country,” he commented.
Deng’s backlash originated from fellow social media users, instead of the government, but that kind of social surveillance bears parallels with the East.
“Regarding targeting dissenters and monitoring open discourse about issues deemed controversial … It's appearing in the US,” noted an academic, a scholar at a US university. “This is observed in China now as well,” she added, adding that there were now fears in the US of pupils informing against teachers, a type of monitoring promoted by the CCP.
The professor, the Peking University law professor, explained that liberal Chinese intellectuals like himself once turned to the US for political inspiration, since public debate on domestic politics in the country is dangerous. But now, “The US is no longer some kind of god for progressive Chinese. America’s image has declined generally.”
“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, who are often, behind closed doors, critical of China’s political system, now perceive it less objectionable than America’s, he stated. “It's somewhat painful to accept this … but post-COVID, authorities appears to be pursuing the right thing in improving the environment and promoting EVs and investing in hi-tech,” Zhang said, while “the West, exemplified by America, appear declining.”
The government's purchase of stakes in American firms has prompted parallels with China, where the line between state and business is often blurred.
Recently, the US government stated it would become a shareholder in a startup specialising in rare earth processing, after taking similar stakes in additional firms deemed vital to the country's safety. These moves have left certain stakeholders nervous that the US is entering a fresh phase of state intervention in the private sector.
Yet, there remain significant distinctions between the US under Trump and the East. In October, multiple media outlets among others declined to agree to a Pentagon policy that demanded they only report on approved information. US courts have halted or reversed many of Trump’s actions, something that is impossible in China’s CCP-controlled judiciary.
An analyst, who established of a consulting firm, a China-focused advisory firm, commented: “The United States might face its gravest challenge of all time, far more severe than currently, and it would remain more free, open, and more liberal than China under Xi.”
Zhang observes that while many intellectuals in China were shocked to see American colleges yield to official requests regarding DEI policies and open discourse on campus, in the East, the top universities are publicly controlled inherently. Administrators, who are appointed by the state, “cannot of saying no. They can’t afford defy orders.”
Still, Americans are beginning to take precautions that were once confined to repressive regimes. One professor at a US university who was previously outspoken on US-China issues refused to speak for this article. He stated: “Honestly, I fear of suppression here: I genuinely feel less afraid criticizing China's leader these days than say anything bad
