When Vickie Wang, a rising performer, takes the stage in New York, she's not just thinking about which jokes to deliver. She also carefully considers what subjects to steer clear of. “I refrain from directly criticizing the administration,” she stated. Or if she does, she makes certain it's not recorded for social media. “I would never publicly share material where I openly disparage the government … I believe it's a habit from China.”
The comedian, thirty-nine, lived in the Chinese metropolis for nearly a decade, leaving in 2022. In 2025, she relocated to the US. Upon arrival, she embarked on an intense period of “revenge bingeing on democracy,” going to lectures, protests, and delving into New York’s library system.
But over the past year since Donald Trump was elected again, there's been a noticeable shift in the atmosphere, she notes. “Back home, I knew where the line was, whereas here I find myself on unstable ground.”
Wang’s concerns reflect a new climate in America which numerous individuals from China, or those who have lived in the country, perceive as disturbingly familiar. Enemies are ostracised. The leader expects total allegiance. Journalists are targeted. Institutions are attacked.
The president has openly expressed about his admiration for Xi Jinping, the nation's authoritarian figure. He's called Xi as “fantastic”. As they agreed a brief ceasefire in the trade war recently, the bonhomie between both figures of nations with diametrically opposed governance models became clear. And after decades of hope in the US that closer ties with the East could assist the growing nation become more open, in the current administration, it seems as if America is shifting in the Chinese direction, instead of the other way around.
“The United States is experiencing a period of cultural revolution,” stated Zhang Qianfan, an academic at a top Chinese university. “The president, Trump, is trying to mobilise the grassroots in order to sideline or weaken established figures … reminiscent of events in the country decades past.”
Ever since Trump initiated the so-called Department for Government Efficiency, or the agency, on the Washington bureaucracy early on in office, many in China see US politics through the lens of the Cultural Revolution. Whether it is the mobilisation of the youth to carry out presidential directives, or purging institutions of perceived enemies, the president from a Chinese viewpoint has brought Mao-style chaos to the US, albeit absent equivalent degrees of force.
However since the upheaval of the initial period of the new administration has calmed, an unfamiliar, distinct type of climate has emerged in the country, which in different ways seems recognizable to numerous Chinese people.
‘The Lighthouse Is Dimmer’
The deepest similarity between Trump’s America and the East is the crackdown on open expression.
A former police officer, now a Chinese Communist party critic, found himself in a controversy recently, similar to what he’d only previously experienced in China. He resided in America since 2019, after escaping China due to pressure from the authorities.
In September, following the passing of Charlie Kirk, Deng tweeted that the individual was “despicable”. Like people nationwide – many of whom were fired as a result of expressing criticism regarding him – Deng faced significant backlash. Relatives had personal info leaked and he was accused of being a Chinese spy attempting 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.
Deng’s pile on came from fellow social media users, instead of the government, but such of social surveillance also has parallels with China.
“Regarding targeting those who disagree and monitoring open discourse on topics deemed controversial … It's appearing in the US,” noted an academic, a scholar at a US university. “This is that you see in the East now as well,” she said, stating that there were now fears in America of students reporting on educators, a type of monitoring promoted by the CCP.
The professor, the Peking University law professor, said that progressive thinkers like himself used to look to America for political inspiration, in part because openly discussing domestic politics in China is risky. However, “The US is no longer a god for Chinese liberals. The US's reputation has worsened generally.”
“We once viewed the US as the beacon of constitutional democracy, but since the new administration, this lighthouse appears dimmer”.
Chinese liberals, who are often, at least in private, critical of China’s political system, now perceive it more acceptable than the US's, he stated. “It's somewhat painful to accept this … but after the pandemic, the government seems to be doing correct policies in improving the environment and developing electric cars and investing in hi-tech,” Zhang said, while “Western nations, exemplified by America, seems to be declining.”
The Trump administration’s purchase of shares in American firms has also drawn comparisons with the East, where the distinction between state and private industry is often blurred.
Recently, authorities announced it will take an investor in a new company focused on rare earth processing, after taking comparable shares in additional firms deemed essential for the country's safety. These moves have made certain stakeholders concerned that America is embarking on a fresh phase of government meddling in private industry.
Yet, there remain major differences between Trump’s America and the East. In October, several news organisations among others refused to sign to a defense department rule that required reporting solely on government-authorised information. American judiciary have halted or overturned many of presidential measures, an action that is impossible in the nation's party-dominated legal system.
An analyst, who established of a consulting firm, specializing in China, said: “America could descend into its gravest challenge of all time, far more severe than currently, and it will still be more free, open, and more liberal than China under Xi.”
The professor observes that while many intellectuals in China were shocked to see US universities yield to government demands regarding diversity and inclusion practices and open discourse on university grounds, in China, the top universities are publicly controlled by default. University leaders, who are selected by the government, “have no liberty refuse. They can’t afford to be disobedient.”
Still, Americans are beginning to adopt measures that were once confined to more authoritarian countries. One professor at a US university who was previously vocal on bilateral matters refused to be interviewed for this piece. He said: “The truth is, I am scared of suppression in the US: I genuinely feel less afraid to criticise Xi now than say anything bad
