As the standup comedian, an emerging performer, takes her platform in New York, she is not only considering what humor to tell. She also carefully considers which topics to steer clear of. “I don't engage in directly criticizing the government,” she stated. Or if she ventures there, she ensures it's not recorded for social media. “I'd never publish openly content where I openly disparage authorities … I think this is a habit acquired back home.”
Wang, thirty-nine, resided in the Chinese metropolis for nearly a decade, leaving in 2022. By 2025, she relocated to the US. Upon arrival, she dove into an intense period of “overindulging on democracy,” attending lectures, protests, and exploring New York’s library system.
But in the year after the president was elected for the second time, there's been a “palpable change” in the atmosphere, she says. “In China, I knew where the line was, while here I'm standing on unstable ground.”
Wang’s fears reflect an emerging political reality in America which numerous individuals from China, or people with experience in the country, perceive as eerily familiar. Enemies face exclusion. The president expects total allegiance. Journalists face scrutiny. Institutions come under fire.
The president has not been shy about his admiration for China's leader, the nation's authoritarian figure. He's called Xi as “fantastic”. When they reached a brief ceasefire in economic tensions recently, the bonhomie between both figures of countries with vastly different political systems became clear. Following years of optimism in America that closer ties with China may help the growing nation to liberalise, under Trump 2.0, it appears that the US is being pulled in China's path, rather than the other way around.
“America is undergoing an era of societal upheaval,” said a constitutional law expert, a professor at Peking University. “The top leader, Donald Trump, is trying to mobilise the grassroots in order to marginalize or undermine established figures … similar to what happened in the country half a century ago.”
Since Trump initiated what's termed Department for Government Efficiency, or Doge, on the Washington bureaucracy at the start in office, numerous Chinese observers see US politics through the lens of the Cultural Revolution. Whether it is the rallying of the youth to execute the leader’s will, or cleansing institutions of those deemed opposition, Trump as viewed from China has brought disorder reminiscent of Mao to the US, though without the same levels of violence.
But after the turmoil of the early months under Trump subsided, a new, different kind of climate has emerged in the country, which in different ways seems recognizable to many Chinese individuals.
‘The Beacon Is Less Bright’
The most profound parallel between the US today and China is the suppression on open expression.
Deng Haiyan, turned CCP dissenter, found himself in the eye of a storm recently, the likes of which he’d only previously experienced in China. He has lived in the US for several years, having fled the country because of harassment from officials.
In September, after the death of a public figure, Deng tweeted that the individual was “despicable”. Like people nationwide – many of whom were fired as a result of making negative comments regarding him – Deng faced significant backlash. His family had personal info leaked and he faced allegations of espionage seeking to create division.
“This incident surprised me deeply. I hadn't thought that something like this could happen in the United States – what should only happen in a repressive state,” Deng said.
His backlash originated from fellow social media users, instead of the state, but that kind of public monitoring bears similarities with the East.
“In terms of targeting dissenters and starting to surveil public speech on topics deemed controversial … It's appearing in the US,” said an academic, an associate professor at a US university. “This is that you see in China today as too,” she said, stating that concerns are rising in America of pupils informing against educators, a form of monitoring that has been encouraged by the CCP.
The professor, the legal expert, explained that liberal Chinese intellectuals such as him once turned to the US for political inspiration, in part because openly discussing internal affairs in the country is dangerous. But now, “America is no longer some kind of god for progressive Chinese. The US's reputation has declined generally.”
“We used to see the US as the symbol of constitutional democracy, but since the new administration, that guide appears dimmer”.
Progressive Chinese, typically, at least in private, skeptical about China’s political system, now perceive it more acceptable than the US's, Zhang said. “It's somewhat painful to accept this reality … but after the pandemic, the government seems to be doing correct policies in improving the environment and promoting EVs and tech investment,” Zhang said, while “the West, exemplified by America, seems to be declining.”
The government's acquisition of shares in American firms has also drawn comparisons with China, where the line between state and business is frequently unclear.
Recently, authorities announced it would become an investor in a startup focused on mineral refinement, following similar stakes in other companies deemed vital to national security. These moves have left certain stakeholders concerned that the US is embarking on a new era 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 declined to agree to a defense department rule that demanded they only report on approved information. American judiciary have blocked or reversed numerous presidential measures, an action that is unthinkable in China’s CCP-controlled judiciary.
An analyst, the founder of Strategy Risks, specializing in China, said: “America could descend into the worst crisis of its history, far more severe than it is now, and it will still be more free, open, and more liberal than China under Xi.”
The professor notes that although many intellectuals in China were surprised to see US universities yield to government demands concerning DEI policies and free speech on campus, in China, the top universities are all state-owned inherently. Administrators, who are selected by the government, “have no liberty refuse. They can’t afford to be disobedient.”
Still, people in the US are starting to adopt measures previously confined to more authoritarian countries. One professor at a US university who was previously outspoken on bilateral matters refused to speak for this piece. He said: “Honestly, I fear of suppression in the US: I actually feel more comfortable criticizing China's leader these days than say anything bad
