As the standup comedian, an emerging comedic talent, takes her platform in New York, she's not just thinking about which jokes to tell. She also carefully considers what subjects to steer clear of. “I refrain from openly criticizing the administration,” she explained. And when she ventures there, she makes certain it's not captured for online platforms. “I'd never publicly share content where I openly disparage the government … I believe this is a habit from China.”
The comedian, thirty-nine, resided in the Chinese metropolis for almost a decade, leaving in 2022. By 2025, she moved to the US. Upon arrival, she embarked on a frenzy of “revenge bingeing on democracy,” going to talks, protests, and delving into the city's library system.
However over the past year since the president returned to office again, there's been a noticeable shift in the environment, she notes. “Back home, I understood where the line was, while in the US I'm standing on unstable ground.”
Wang’s fears reflect an emerging political reality in America which numerous individuals from China, or those with experience in the country, perceive as disturbingly similar. Enemies are ostracised. The president expects total allegiance. Reporters are targeted. Institutions come under fire.
The president has openly expressed about his admiration for China's leader, the nation's authoritarian figure. He's called Xi as “fantastic”. When they reached a temporary truce in economic tensions on Thursday, the camaraderie between both figures of nations with vastly different political systems was evident. And after decades of hope in America that closer ties with the East could assist the rising power to liberalise, under Trump 2.0, it appears that the US is being pulled in China's path, rather than vice versa.
“The United States is experiencing a period of cultural revolution,” stated a constitutional law expert, an academic at Peking University. “The president, Trump, is trying to rally the masses in order to marginalize or weaken established figures … reminiscent of what happened in the country half a century ago.”
Ever since the administration unleashed what's termed Department for Government Efficiency, or the agency, on federal institutions early on of his term, many in China have viewed American governance through the lens of the Cultural Revolution. Be it the mobilisation of young people to carry out presidential directives, or purging organizations of perceived enemies, Trump as viewed from China has delivered Mao-style chaos to America, albeit absent the same levels of violence.
But after the upheaval of the initial period under Trump has calmed, an unfamiliar, distinct type of political atmosphere has settled in the US, which variously seems recognizable to many Chinese people.
‘The Lighthouse Has Become Less Bright’
The deepest parallel between the US today and China is the suppression on free speech.
A former police officer, now a Chinese Communist party dissenter, ended up in the eye of a storm this year, similar to what he’d only previously experienced in China. Deng resided in the US since 2019, having fled China because of pressure from the authorities.
In September, following the passing of a public figure, he posted that the individual was a “scumbag”. Like people nationwide – many of whom lost their jobs for making negative comments regarding him – Deng faced a huge backlash. His family had personal info leaked and he faced allegations of being a Chinese spy attempting to divide the US.
“That event surprised me deeply. I never imagined such a thing would occur in America – something that should only happen in an authoritarian country,” Deng said.
His backlash originated from fellow social media users, rather than the state, but such of social surveillance bears parallels with the East.
“In terms of targeting dissenters and monitoring open discourse on topics deemed controversial … It's appearing in the US,” noted Maria Repnikova, a scholar at Georgia State University. “This is observed in China today as well,” she said, stating that concerns are rising in the US of students reporting on educators, a form of surveillance promoted by the CCP.
Zhang, the Peking University law professor, explained that liberal Chinese intellectuals like himself once turned to the US for political inspiration, since openly discussing domestic politics in the country is risky. But now, “America is no longer a ideal for progressive Chinese. America’s image has declined generally.”
“We used to see America as the symbol of constitutional democracy, but after Trump took power, this lighthouse appears dimmer”.
Chinese liberals, typically, behind closed doors, critical of the nation's governance, now perceive it more acceptable than the US's, he stated. “It's somewhat difficult to acknowledge this reality … but post-COVID, the government appears to be pursuing correct policies in environmental protection and promoting EVs and investing in hi-tech,” Zhang said, while “Western nations, as represented by the United States, appear in decline.”
The Trump administration’s acquisition of stakes in American firms has also drawn comparisons with China, where the distinction between state and business is often blurred.
On Monday, authorities announced it will take a shareholder in a startup specialising in mineral refinement, after taking comparable shares in additional firms it considers vital to national security. These moves have left certain stakeholders concerned that America is embarking on a fresh phase of government meddling in private industry.
There are still significant distinctions between Trump’s America and China. Last month, several news organisations among others declined to agree to a defense department rule that required reporting solely on approved information. US courts have blocked or reversed numerous presidential measures, something that is impossible in China’s party-dominated legal system.
Isaac Stone Fish, who established of Strategy Risks, specializing in China, said: “America might face the worst crisis of its history, far more severe than currently, and it would remain freer, open, and liberal than China under Xi.”
The professor observes that while many intellectuals in China were shocked to see US universities yield to official requests regarding DEI policies and free speech on university grounds, in the East, the top universities are all state-owned by default. Administrators, who are appointed by the state, “have no liberty 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. An academic at an American college once outspoken on bilateral matters declined to speak for this piece. He stated: “Honestly, I fear of the censorship in the US: I actually feel more comfortable to criticise Xi these days than say anything bad
