As Vickie Wang, a rising comedic talent, takes the stage in New York, she's not only considering what humor to tell. She also weighs what subjects to avoid. “I don't engage in directly attacking the government,” she stated. And when she ventures there, she ensures it isn't recorded for online platforms. “I would never publicly share material in which I directly criticize authorities … I believe it's a learned behavior from China.”
Wang, thirty-nine, lived in Shanghai for almost ten years, departing in that year. By 2025, she relocated to America. Upon arrival, she embarked on an intense period of “overindulging on democracy,” going to talks, demonstrations, and delving into New York’s library system.
But in the year since Donald Trump was elected again, there has been a noticeable shift in the environment, she notes. “In China, I understood where the line was, whereas in the US I find myself on unstable ground.”
Her concerns reflect a new political reality in America which numerous individuals from China, or those who have lived in China, find disturbingly familiar. Opponents are ostracised. The president expects absolute loyalty. Journalists are targeted. Establishments are attacked.
Trump has not been shy about his admiration for China's leader, China’s strongman leader. He has described Xi as “fantastic”. As they agreed a brief ceasefire in economic tensions on Thursday, the camaraderie between both figures of nations with vastly different governance models was evident. Following years of optimism in America that improved relations with China may help the growing nation become more open, under Trump 2.0, it seems that America is being pulled in China's path, instead of vice versa.
“The United States is undergoing a period of cultural revolution,” stated Zhang Qianfan, a professor at Peking University. “The top leader, Trump, is attempting to mobilise the grassroots in order to marginalize or weaken the elite … similar to events in China half a century ago.”
Since Trump unleashed what's termed Department for Government Efficiency, or Doge, on federal institutions early on in office, numerous Chinese observers have viewed US politics through the lens of China's historical period. Be it the rallying of the youth to execute the leader’s will, or cleansing institutions of perceived enemies, the president as viewed from China has delivered disorder reminiscent of Mao to the US, though without the same levels of violence.
But since the turmoil of the initial period under Trump subsided, a new, distinct type of political atmosphere has settled in the US, which variously seems recognizable to numerous Chinese people.
‘The Beacon Is Less Bright’
The deepest parallel between Trump’s America and the East is the suppression on open expression.
A former police officer, now a Chinese Communist party critic, ended up in a controversy this year, the likes of which he once faced in his homeland. Deng resided in the US for several years, after escaping China because of harassment from officials.
Last fall, after the death of a public figure, he posted that Kirk was “despicable”. Similar to others across the US – who lost their jobs as a result of expressing criticism about Kirk – Deng faced a huge backlash. His family was doxed and he faced allegations of being a Chinese spy attempting to divide the US.
“This incident surprised me deeply. I never imagined such a thing would occur in America – something that should only happen in a repressive state,” he commented.
Deng’s pile on came from online peers, rather than the state, but such of public monitoring bears parallels with China.
“Regarding going after those who disagree and starting to surveil open discourse on topics that are sensitive … That’s starting to emerge here,” said an academic, an associate professor at Georgia State University. “That’s something observed in the East now as too,” she said, stating that there were now fears in America of students reporting on educators, a type of monitoring that has been encouraged by the CCP.
Zhang, the Peking University law professor, explained that liberal Chinese intellectuals such as him used to look to America for political inspiration, in part because openly discussing domestic politics in China is dangerous. However, “America is no longer a god for Chinese liberals. The US's reputation has worsened across the board.”
“We once viewed the US as the symbol of constitutional democracy, but since the new administration, that guide appears dimmer”.
Progressive Chinese, typically, behind closed doors, critical of the nation's governance, now perceive it more acceptable than the US's, he stated. “It’s sort of painful to accept this reality … but post-COVID, the government appears to be pursuing the right thing in improving the environment and developing electric cars and tech investment,” he noted, while “the West, as represented by America, seems to be declining.”
The Trump administration’s purchase of shares in US companies has prompted parallels with the East, where the line between government and business is frequently unclear.
On Monday, authorities stated it would become a shareholder in a startup specialising in rare earth processing, after taking similar stakes in other companies deemed essential for the country's safety. The deals have made certain stakeholders concerned that the US is entering a new era of state intervention in private industry.
There are still significant distinctions between Trump’s America and China. In October, several news organisations among others refused to sign to a Pentagon policy that required they only report on government-authorised news. US courts have halted or overturned many of Trump’s actions, an action that would be unthinkable in the nation's CCP-controlled judiciary.
An analyst, the founder of Strategy Risks, a China-focused advisory firm, said: “America could descend into its gravest challenge of its history, orders of magnitudes worse than it is now, and it will still be more free, open, and liberal than the East under its leader.”
The professor notes that although many intellectuals in the country were shocked to see US universities yield to government demands concerning diversity and inclusion practices and free speech on campus, in China, the top universities are all state-owned inherently. University leaders, which are selected by the state, “cannot of saying no. They can’t afford defy orders.”
Nevertheless, people in the US are starting to take precautions previously confined to more authoritarian countries. One professor at an American college who was previously vocal on bilateral matters declined to be interviewed for this piece. He stated: “The truth is, I fear of the censorship here: I actually feel more comfortable criticizing China's leader these days than say anything bad
