When the standup comedian, an emerging performer, steps onto her platform in New York, she's not only thinking about which jokes to deliver. Additionally, she weighs what subjects to steer clear of. “I refrain from openly attacking the government,” she explained. And when she does, she ensures it's not recorded for social media. “I'd never publicly share content where I directly criticize the government … I think this is a habit from China.”
Wang, 39, resided in the Chinese metropolis for nearly a decade, departing in 2022. By 2025, she relocated to America. When she got there, she embarked on an intense period of “overindulging on democracy,” attending lectures, demonstrations, and exploring New York’s library system.
But in the year after Donald Trump returned to office again, there's been a “palpable change” in the atmosphere, she notes. “Back home, I understood the boundaries, whereas here I'm standing on unstable ground.”
Her concerns mirror an emerging political reality in the US which many Chinese, or those who have lived in China, perceive as disturbingly similar. Opponents are ostracised. The leader demands total allegiance. Journalists face scrutiny. Establishments are attacked.
The president has openly expressed regarding his respect for Xi Jinping, China’s strongman leader. He has described him as “fantastic”. As they agreed a brief ceasefire in economic tensions on Thursday, the bonhomie between the two leaders of nations with vastly different political systems became clear. Following years of hope in America that improved relations with the East may help the growing nation to liberalise, under Trump 2.0, it appears as if America is shifting in China's path, rather than the other way around.
“America is experiencing a period of societal upheaval,” said Zhang Qianfan, a professor at a top Chinese university. “The top leader, Donald Trump, is attempting to rally the masses to marginalize or weaken established figures … reminiscent of what happened in China decades past.”
Since Trump initiated the so-called a government streamlining body, or the agency, on federal institutions early on in office, numerous Chinese observers have viewed American governance through the lens of China's historical period. Whether it is the rallying of the youth to execute presidential directives, or cleansing institutions of perceived enemies, Trump as viewed from China has brought Mao-style chaos to the US, albeit absent equivalent degrees of violence.
However after the upheaval of the initial period under Trump has calmed, an unfamiliar, different kind of political atmosphere has emerged in the US, which variously also feels recognizable to numerous Chinese individuals.
‘The Beacon Is Less Bright’
The most profound similarity between Trump’s America and the East is the suppression on open expression.
A former police officer, turned CCP critic, ended up 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 harassment from the authorities.
In September, following the passing of Charlie Kirk, he posted that Kirk was a “scumbag”. Like people nationwide – who were fired for making negative comments regarding him – he encountered significant backlash. Relatives was doxed and he was accused of being a Chinese spy attempting to create division.
“This incident was a real shock. I never imagined such a thing would occur in America – what should only happen in a repressive state,” he commented.
His backlash came from fellow social media users, instead of the state, but that kind of public monitoring also has parallels with China.
“Regarding targeting those who disagree and starting to surveil open discourse on topics that are sensitive … It's appearing in the US,” noted an academic, a scholar at a US university. “This is that you see in the East now as well,” she said, stating that concerns are rising in the US of pupils informing against educators, a form of monitoring promoted by the CCP.
The professor, the legal expert, said that progressive thinkers like himself once turned to the US for political inspiration, since openly discussing domestic politics in China is dangerous. But now, “The US is no longer some kind of god for progressive Chinese. America’s image has declined across the board.”
“We used to see America as the beacon of democratic governance, but after Trump took power, that guide seems to have become dimmer”.
Progressive Chinese, who are often, behind closed doors, critical of the nation's governance, are increasingly finding it more acceptable than the US's, he stated. “It’s sort of difficult to acknowledge this … but after the pandemic, the government appears to be pursuing correct policies in improving the environment and promoting EVs and tech investment,” he noted, while “the West, as represented by the United States, seems to be declining.”
The government's acquisition of shares in US companies has also drawn parallels with the East, where the distinction between state and business is frequently unclear.
On Monday, authorities stated it would become an investor in a new company specialising in rare earth processing, following comparable shares in additional firms it considers essential for national security. The deals have left some investors nervous that the US is embarking on a fresh phase of state intervention in private industry.
Yet, there remain major differences between the US under Trump and the East. In October, several news organisations including the Guardian refused to sign to a Pentagon policy that demanded they only report on government-authorised news. American judiciary have halted or reversed numerous Trump’s actions, an action that is impossible in China’s CCP-controlled judiciary.
Isaac Stone Fish, who established of a consulting firm, specializing in China, commented: “America could descend into its gravest challenge of all time, orders of magnitudes worse than currently, and it will still be freer, more open, and more liberal than the East under its leader.”
The professor observes that while numerous scholars in China were surprised to see American colleges capitulate to official requests regarding diversity and inclusion practices and free speech on university grounds, in China, leading institutions are all state-owned by default. University leaders, which are appointed by the state, “have no liberty refuse. They can’t afford to be disobedient.”
Still, Americans are beginning to take precautions that were once associated with more authoritarian countries. One professor at a US university who was previously outspoken on bilateral matters declined to be interviewed for this piece. He stated: “The truth is, I fear of the censorship in the US: I actually feel less afraid criticizing China's leader these days than say anything bad
