When Vickie Wang, a rising performer, takes the stage in New York, she's not just thinking about what humor to deliver. She also carefully considers which topics to steer clear of. “I refrain from openly attacking the administration,” she explained. And when she does, she ensures it isn't recorded for social media. “I would never publish openly material where I openly disparage the government … I believe it's a habit from China.”
The comedian, 39, resided in Shanghai for almost a decade, leaving in 2022. By 2025, she relocated to America. Upon arrival, she embarked on an intense period of “overindulging on freedom,” going to lectures, protests, and delving into New York’s public library.
But in the year after Donald Trump returned to office for the second time, there has been a “palpable change” in the atmosphere, she notes. “Back home, I understood where the line was, while in the US I'm standing on unstable ground.”
Her concerns reflect a new political reality in the US which numerous individuals from China, or people with experience in China, find disturbingly familiar. Opponents face exclusion. The leader expects absolute loyalty. Journalists are targeted. Establishments come under fire.
Trump has not been shy about his admiration for Xi Jinping, China’s strongman leader. He has described Xi as a “great guy”. As they agreed a temporary truce in economic tensions on Thursday, the bonhomie between both figures of nations with vastly different governance models became clear. And after decades of hope in America that improved relations with China could assist the growing nation become more open, in the current administration, it appears that America is shifting in China's path, instead of vice versa.
“The United States is undergoing an era of cultural revolution,” stated Zhang Qianfan, a professor at a top Chinese university. “The president, Donald Trump, is attempting to rally the grassroots to sideline or weaken the elite … reminiscent of events in the country decades past.”
Since the administration initiated the so-called a government streamlining body, or the agency, on federal institutions at the start of his term, many in China have viewed American governance through the lens of China's historical period. Be it the rallying of the youth to execute presidential directives, or purging institutions of those deemed opposition, the president from a Chinese viewpoint has brought disorder reminiscent of Mao to America, though absent the same levels of force.
But after the turmoil of the early months under Trump subsided, an unfamiliar, different kind of political atmosphere has settled in the country, which variously also feels recognizable to numerous Chinese individuals.
‘The Lighthouse Is Less Bright’
The deepest parallel between Trump’s America and the East is the crackdown on open expression.
Deng Haiyan, now a Chinese Communist party critic, found himself in the eye of a storm recently, the likes of which he’d only previously experienced in China. He resided in America for several years, after escaping China due to harassment from officials.
In September, after the death of Charlie Kirk, Deng tweeted that Kirk was a “scumbag”. Similar to others across the US – many of whom were fired for making negative comments about Kirk – he encountered significant 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 that something like this would occur in America – something that typically happens in a repressive state,” he commented.
His backlash originated from fellow social media users, instead of the government, but that kind of public monitoring bears similarities with China.
“Regarding going after dissenters and monitoring public speech about issues that are sensitive … That’s starting to emerge in the US,” noted Maria Repnikova, an associate professor at Georgia State University. “This is observed in China today as well,” she said, adding that concerns are rising in America of students reporting on teachers, a form of monitoring promoted by Chinese authorities.
Zhang, the Peking University law professor, explained that progressive thinkers like himself used to look to the US for ideals, in part because openly discussing internal affairs in the country is dangerous. But now, “America is no longer a god for progressive Chinese. The US's reputation has worsened across the board.”
“We used to see America as the beacon of democratic governance, but since the new administration, that guide seems to have become dimmer”.
Progressive Chinese, typically, behind closed doors, critical of the nation's governance, are increasingly finding it less objectionable than America’s, he stated. “It's somewhat difficult to acknowledge this … but after the pandemic, the government seems to be doing the right thing in environmental protection and developing electric cars and investing in hi-tech,” Zhang said, while “Western nations, exemplified by the United States, appear in decline.”
The Trump administration’s acquisition of shares in US companies has also drawn comparisons with the East, where the distinction between state and business is often blurred.
Recently, the US government stated it will take a shareholder in a new company focused on mineral refinement, following comparable shares in additional firms it considers vital to the country's safety. The deals have left certain stakeholders concerned that the US is embarking on a fresh phase of state intervention in the private sector.
Yet, there remain major differences between the US under Trump and China. In October, several news organisations among others refused to sign to a Pentagon policy that required reporting solely on approved news. US courts have halted or reversed many of Trump’s actions, an action that would be unthinkable in the nation's CCP-controlled judiciary.
Isaac Stone Fish, who established of Strategy Risks, a China-focused advisory firm, commented: “America could descend into its gravest challenge of all time, orders of magnitudes worse than currently, and it would remain more free, more open, and more liberal than the East under its leader.”
Zhang notes that although many intellectuals in the country were shocked to see American colleges capitulate to government demands concerning DEI policies and open discourse on campus, in China, leading institutions are all state-owned by default. Administrators, who are selected by the government, “have no liberty refuse. They dare not to be disobedient.”
Nevertheless, Americans are starting to adopt measures previously associated with more authoritarian countries. One professor at a US university once outspoken on US-China issues declined to be interviewed for this piece. He stated: “The truth is, I am scared of suppression here: I actually feel more comfortable to criticise Xi these days than say anything bad
