Trump's America During the New Administration Seems Oddly Familiar to Those Watching from the East

As the standup comedian, an emerging comedic talent, steps onto her platform in New York, she's not only thinking about what humor to tell. She also weighs what subjects to steer clear of. “I don't engage in openly criticizing the government,” she explained. And when she does, she ensures it isn't captured for social media. “I'd never publicly share content in which I openly disparage the government … I think this is a learned behavior acquired back home.”

The comedian, thirty-nine, lived in Shanghai for almost a decade, departing in 2022. By 2025, she moved to America. When she got there, she dove into a frenzy of “overindulging on democracy,” going to talks, protests, and delving into the city's library system.

However in the year after the president was elected for the second time, there's been a “palpable change” in the environment, she notes. “In China, I understood the boundaries, while in the US I find myself on shifting sands.”

Wang’s fears reflect an emerging climate in the US which many Chinese, or people who have lived in China, perceive as disturbingly familiar. Opponents are ostracised. The president demands total allegiance. Reporters are targeted. Institutions are attacked.

The president has not been shy about his admiration for China's leader, China’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 was evident. Following years of optimism in the US that improved relations with the East could assist the rising power to liberalise, under Trump 2.0, it seems as if America is shifting in China's path, instead of vice versa.

“America is experiencing an era of cultural revolution,” stated Zhang Qianfan, an academic at a top Chinese university. “The top leader, Donald Trump, is attempting to mobilise the grassroots in order to sideline or undermine established figures … similar to what happened in the country decades past.”

Since the administration unleashed what's termed a government streamlining body, or the agency, 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 young people to carry out the leader’s will, or purging institutions of perceived enemies, Trump as viewed from China has delivered disorder reminiscent of Mao to the US, albeit without equivalent degrees of force.

However since the upheaval of the early months of the new administration subsided, a new, different kind of climate has emerged in the US, which variously also feels familiar to numerous Chinese people.

‘The Lighthouse Is Less Bright’

The deepest similarity between Trump’s America and the East is the suppression on free speech.

A former police officer, turned CCP dissenter, ended up in a controversy this year, the likes of which he once faced in his homeland. He has lived in America for several years, after escaping China due to pressure from officials.

In September, after the death of Charlie Kirk, Deng tweeted that Kirk was “despicable”. Like people nationwide – many of whom were fired for expressing criticism regarding him – he encountered a huge backlash. His family had personal info leaked and he was accused of espionage seeking to create division.

“This incident was a real shock. I hadn't thought such a thing would occur in the United States – something that typically happens in an authoritarian country,” Deng said.

His backlash came from fellow social media users, rather than the government, but that kind of public monitoring also has similarities with the East.

“Regarding going after dissenters and monitoring public speech on topics deemed controversial … It's appearing here,” noted Maria Repnikova, a scholar at a US university. “This is that you see in the East now as too,” she said, stating that there were now fears in America of pupils informing against teachers, a form of monitoring promoted by the CCP.

The professor, the legal expert, said that liberal Chinese intellectuals such as him once turned to America for ideals, since public debate on domestic politics in the country is dangerous. However, “America is no longer a god for Chinese liberals. America’s image has worsened generally.”

“We once viewed the US as the beacon of democratic governance, but after Trump took power, that guide appears dimmer”.

Progressive Chinese, who are often, behind closed doors, skeptical about the nation's governance, now perceive it more acceptable than America’s, he stated. “It's somewhat difficult to acknowledge this … but post-COVID, the government seems to be doing the right thing in environmental protection and promoting EVs and investing in hi-tech,” he noted, while “Western nations, exemplified by the United States, appear declining.”

The Trump administration’s acquisition of shares in US companies has also drawn comparisons with China, where the distinction between government and business is often blurred.

On Monday, the US government announced it will take an investor in a new company focused on rare earth processing, following comparable shares in other companies deemed vital to the country's safety. The deals have left certain stakeholders concerned that the US is entering a new era of government meddling in private industry.

There are still major differences between the US under Trump and the East. Last month, several news organisations including the Guardian declined to agree to a defense department rule that demanded reporting solely on government-authorised information. US courts have halted or reversed many of Trump’s actions, something that is impossible in China’s CCP-controlled legal system.

Isaac Stone Fish, who established of a consulting firm, a China-focused advisory firm, said: “The United States could descend into its gravest challenge of all time, far more severe than it is now, and it will still be more free, more open, and more liberal than China under Xi.”

Zhang observes that although numerous scholars in China were surprised to see American colleges capitulate to official requests regarding diversity and inclusion practices and free speech on campus, in the East, leading institutions are all state-owned inherently. Administrators, who are appointed by the state, “cannot of saying no. They can’t afford to be disobedient.”

Still, people in the US are beginning to adopt measures that were once confined to more authoritarian countries. An academic at a US university who was previously vocal on bilateral matters refused to speak for this article. He stated: “The truth is, I fear of the censorship in the US: I actually feel less afraid to criticise Xi now than say anything bad