When the standup comedian, a rising comedic talent, takes her platform in New York, she's not only thinking about what humor to tell. Additionally, she carefully considers which topics to steer clear of. “I refrain from directly attacking the government,” she stated. And when she does, she ensures it isn't captured for online platforms. “I'd never publish openly content where I openly disparage the government … I believe this is a habit from China.”
Wang, thirty-nine, resided in Shanghai for almost ten years, leaving in 2022. In 2025, she relocated to America. When she got there, she embarked on an intense period of “revenge bingeing on democracy,” going to lectures, demonstrations, and exploring New York’s library system.
However over the past year since the president was elected again, there's been a noticeable shift in the atmosphere, she notes. “In China, I understood the boundaries, whereas here I find myself on unstable ground.”
Wang’s fears mirror a new political reality in the US which numerous individuals from China, or those who have lived in the country, find eerily similar. Opponents face exclusion. The leader expects total allegiance. Reporters face scrutiny. Institutions come under fire.
The president has openly expressed regarding his respect for Xi Jinping, the nation's strongman leader. He's called him as “fantastic”. As they agreed a temporary truce in economic tensions recently, the bonhomie between the two leaders of nations with vastly different political systems became clear. Following years of hope in the US that improved relations with China may help the rising power become more open, under Trump 2.0, it appears as if the US is being pulled in China's path, rather than the other way around.
“America is experiencing an era of societal upheaval,” stated Zhang Qianfan, an academic at Peking University. “The president, Trump, is trying to rally the masses in order to marginalize or weaken established figures … reminiscent of events in the country decades past.”
Ever since Trump unleashed what's termed Department for Government Efficiency, or the agency, on federal institutions early on in office, numerous Chinese observers have viewed US politics via the perspective of the Cultural Revolution. Be it the mobilisation of the youth to execute the leader’s will, or cleansing institutions of those deemed opposition, Trump from a Chinese viewpoint has delivered disorder reminiscent of Mao to the US, albeit absent the same levels of force.
But after the upheaval of the early months under Trump has calmed, a new, different kind of political atmosphere has settled in the country, which variously seems recognizable to many Chinese individuals.
‘The Lighthouse Is Less Bright’
The most profound similarity between Trump’s America and China is the suppression on free speech.
A former police officer, turned Chinese Communist party critic, found himself in a controversy recently, similar to what he once faced in China. He has lived in the US for several years, after escaping the country due to pressure from officials.
Last fall, following the passing of Charlie Kirk, he posted that the individual was “despicable”. Similar to others across the US – who lost their jobs as a result of expressing criticism regarding him – he encountered a huge backlash. Relatives had personal info leaked and he was accused of being a Chinese spy seeking to divide the US.
“That event surprised me deeply. I hadn't thought that something like this would occur in the United States – what typically happens in a repressive state,” Deng said.
Deng’s backlash originated from online peers, instead of the state, but that kind of public monitoring bears similarities with China.
“In terms of going after dissenters and starting to surveil public speech on topics that are sensitive … It's appearing in the US,” noted Maria Repnikova, a scholar at Georgia State University. “This is that you see in China today as too,” she said, adding that there were now fears in the US of pupils informing against teachers, a form of surveillance that has been encouraged by Chinese authorities.
The professor, the Peking University law professor, said that liberal Chinese intellectuals like himself once turned to the US for political inspiration, in part because public debate on internal affairs in China is dangerous. However, “America is no longer some kind of god for progressive Chinese. The US's reputation has declined generally.”
“We used to see America as the beacon of democratic governance, but since the new administration, this lighthouse seems to have become less luminous”.
Progressive Chinese, who are often, behind closed doors, critical of the nation's governance, now perceive it less objectionable than the US's, he stated. “It’s sort of difficult to acknowledge this … but post-COVID, authorities appears to be pursuing correct policies in improving the environment and developing electric cars and tech investment,” he noted, while “the West, as represented by America, appear in decline.”
The Trump administration’s purchase of stakes in American firms has prompted comparisons with China, where the distinction between state and private industry is frequently unclear.
On Monday, the US government stated it will take a shareholder in a new company focused on mineral refinement, after taking comparable shares in additional firms it considers essential for national security. The deals have left some investors concerned that the US is embarking on a fresh phase of government meddling in the private sector.
Yet, there remain major differences between Trump’s America and the East. In October, multiple media outlets including the Guardian refused to sign to a Pentagon policy that required they only report on approved news. American judiciary have blocked or reversed many of presidential measures, something that would be impossible in China’s CCP-controlled legal system.
An analyst, who established of Strategy Risks, specializing in China, commented: “The United States might face the worst crisis of its history, far more severe than it is now, and it will still be freer, open, and more liberal than China under Xi.”
The professor notes that although numerous scholars in China were surprised to see American colleges yield to official requests regarding DEI policies and free speech on university grounds, in the East, the top universities are all state-owned by default. University leaders, who are selected by the government, “have no liberty refuse. They dare not to be disobedient.”
Nevertheless, people in the US are starting to adopt measures previously confined to repressive regimes. One professor at an American college who was previously vocal on US-China issues declined to be interviewed for this article. He said: “Honestly, I am scared of suppression in the US: I genuinely feel less afraid to criticise Xi these days than say anything bad
