As the standup comedian, a rising comedic talent, steps onto her platform in New York, she's not just thinking about which jokes to tell. She also carefully considers which topics to steer clear of. “I refrain from directly criticizing the administration,” she stated. And when she does, she makes certain it isn't recorded for social media. “I'd never publicly share content in which I directly criticize authorities … I think this is a habit acquired back home.”
Wang, thirty-nine, lived in the Chinese metropolis for nearly ten years, leaving in 2022. In 2025, she relocated to America. When she got there, she dove into a frenzy of “overindulging on freedom,” attending talks, protests, and exploring New York’s library system.
However over the past year after Donald Trump was elected for the second time, there's been a noticeable shift in the atmosphere, she says. “In China, I understood where the line was, whereas here I find myself on shifting sands.”
Wang’s concerns reflect an emerging climate in the US which many Chinese, or people with experience in the country, perceive as disturbingly similar. Enemies are ostracised. The president demands absolute loyalty. Reporters are targeted. Establishments are attacked.
Trump has not been shy regarding his respect for Xi Jinping, the nation's authoritarian figure. He has described Xi as a “great guy”. When they reached a brief ceasefire in economic tensions recently, the bonhomie between both figures of countries with diametrically opposed governance models became clear. Following years of optimism in America that improved relations with China could assist the growing nation become more open, under Trump 2.0, it appears as if America is being pulled in the Chinese direction, instead of the other way around.
“The United States is experiencing an era of societal upheaval,” said a constitutional law expert, an academic at Peking University. “The president, Trump, is trying to mobilise the masses in order to marginalize or undermine the elite … reminiscent of what happened in China decades past.”
Ever since the administration initiated what's termed a government streamlining body, or Doge, on federal institutions early on of his term, many in China have viewed American governance through the lens of China's historical period. Whether it is the mobilisation of young people to execute presidential directives, or purging institutions of perceived enemies, the president as viewed from China has delivered disorder reminiscent of Mao to the US, though absent equivalent degrees of force.
But after the upheaval of the initial period under Trump subsided, an unfamiliar, different kind of political atmosphere has settled in the US, which in different ways also feels familiar to many Chinese individuals.
‘The Beacon Is Dimmer’
The deepest similarity between Trump’s America and China is the crackdown on open expression.
Deng Haiyan, turned CCP dissenter, ended up in a controversy this year, similar to what he once faced in his homeland. He resided in the US since 2019, after escaping China because of harassment from officials.
In September, following the passing of Charlie Kirk, he posted that Kirk was “despicable”. Like people across the US – many of whom lost their jobs for making negative comments about Kirk – he encountered significant backlash. Relatives had personal info leaked and he was accused of being a Chinese spy attempting to create division.
“That event surprised me deeply. I never imagined such a thing could happen in the United States – something that typically happens in an authoritarian country,” Deng said.
His backlash came from fellow social media users, instead of the state, but that kind of social surveillance bears parallels with the East.
“In terms of targeting those who disagree and monitoring public speech on topics that are sensitive … That’s starting to emerge here,” noted an academic, an associate professor at a US university. “This is that you see in the East now as well,” she said, adding that concerns are rising in the US of pupils informing against educators, a form of surveillance that has been encouraged by the CCP.
The professor, the legal expert, said that progressive thinkers like himself used to look to the US for ideals, in part because public debate on domestic politics in the country is dangerous. But now, “The US isn't a god for Chinese liberals. The US's reputation has declined generally.”
“We used to see the US as the beacon of democratic governance, but since the new administration, this lighthouse appears dimmer”.
Progressive Chinese, who are often, behind closed doors, skeptical about China’s political system, now perceive it less objectionable than the US's, he stated. “It’s sort of painful to accept this reality … but after the pandemic, authorities seems to be doing the right thing in improving the environment and developing electric cars and investing in hi-tech,” Zhang said, while “the West, as represented by America, seems to be declining.”
The government's acquisition of shares in US companies has also drawn parallels with China, where the distinction between state and private industry is frequently unclear.
On Monday, authorities stated it will take a shareholder in a new company focused on rare earth processing, following similar stakes in other companies deemed essential for the country's safety. The deals have made certain stakeholders nervous that America is entering a fresh phase of state intervention in private industry.
Yet, there remain significant distinctions between Trump’s America and the East. Last month, several news organisations including the Guardian declined to agree to a defense department rule that required reporting solely on approved news. US courts have blocked or overturned numerous Trump’s actions, something that is unthinkable in China’s CCP-controlled judiciary.
An analyst, who established of a consulting firm, specializing in China, commented: “The United States 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 although many intellectuals in China were surprised to see American colleges yield to official requests regarding diversity and inclusion practices 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 state, “cannot of saying no. They can’t afford to be disobedient.”
Still, people in the US are beginning to take precautions that were once confined to more authoritarian countries. One professor at an American college once vocal on US-China issues declined to speak for this piece. He stated: “The truth is, I fear of the censorship here: I actually feel more comfortable criticizing China's leader now than say anything bad
