When Vickie Wang, an emerging comedic talent, takes her platform in New York, she is not only thinking about what humor to deliver. Additionally, she carefully considers which topics to steer clear of. “I don't engage in directly attacking the administration,” she stated. And when she ventures there, she makes certain it's not captured for social media. “I'd never publicly share content in which I openly disparage authorities … I think this is a learned behavior from China.”
The comedian, 39, resided in the Chinese metropolis for nearly a decade, leaving in that year. In 2025, she moved to America. When she got there, she embarked on a frenzy of “overindulging on democracy,” going to talks, protests, and delving into New York’s public library.
However over the past year after Donald Trump returned to office again, there's been a “palpable change” in the environment, she notes. “Back home, I understood where the line was, whereas here I'm standing on unstable ground.”
Wang’s fears reflect an emerging political reality in America which numerous individuals from China, or people with experience in China, perceive as eerily familiar. Enemies are ostracised. The leader demands total allegiance. Reporters face scrutiny. Institutions come under fire.
Trump has not been shy regarding his respect for Xi Jinping, China’s strongman leader. He has described Xi as a “great guy”. When they reached a brief ceasefire in economic tensions recently, the bonhomie between both figures of nations with vastly different political systems became clear. And after decades of hope in the US that closer ties with the East could assist the rising power to liberalise, under Trump 2.0, it seems as if the US is shifting in the Chinese direction, instead of the other way around.
“The United States is experiencing a period of societal upheaval,” stated a constitutional law expert, a professor at a top Chinese university. “The top leader, Donald Trump, is trying to mobilise the grassroots in order to marginalize or weaken the elite … reminiscent of events in China half a century ago.”
Ever since the administration initiated what's termed Department for Government Efficiency, or Doge, on the Washington bureaucracy at the start of his term, numerous Chinese observers have viewed US politics via the perspective of the Cultural Revolution. Whether it is the mobilisation of young people to carry out the leader’s will, or purging institutions of those deemed opposition, Trump as viewed from China has delivered Mao-style chaos to America, though absent the same levels of violence.
However since the upheaval of the initial period under Trump has calmed, a new, distinct type of climate has settled in the country, which variously seems familiar to many Chinese people.
‘The Lighthouse Is Less Bright’
The most profound parallel between the US today and China is the crackdown on free speech.
A former police officer, turned CCP critic, ended up in a controversy recently, the likes of which he once faced in his homeland. He resided in the US since 2019, after escaping the country because of harassment from the authorities.
In September, following the passing of a public figure, Deng tweeted that the individual was “despicable”. Like people nationwide – many of whom lost their jobs as a result of expressing criticism regarding him – Deng faced a huge backlash. Relatives was doxed and he faced allegations of espionage seeking to divide the US.
“This incident surprised me deeply. I hadn't thought that something like this would occur in America – what typically happens in an authoritarian country,” he commented.
His backlash came from online peers, rather than the state, but that kind of public monitoring bears parallels with China.
“Regarding targeting those who disagree and starting to surveil public speech on topics deemed controversial … It's appearing here,” noted Maria Repnikova, a scholar at a US university. “This is observed in China today as well,” she said, adding that there were now fears in America of students reporting on educators, a type of monitoring that has been encouraged by the CCP.
Zhang, the legal expert, explained that liberal Chinese intellectuals like himself once turned to the US for political inspiration, since public debate on domestic politics in the country is dangerous. However, “America isn't a ideal for Chinese liberals. America’s image has declined generally.”
“We once viewed America as the symbol of democratic governance, but since the new administration, that guide appears less luminous”.
Progressive Chinese, typically, behind closed doors, skeptical about China’s political system, are increasingly finding it less objectionable than the US's, he stated. “It’s sort of difficult to acknowledge this … but post-COVID, the government appears to be pursuing correct policies in improving the environment and promoting EVs and tech investment,” Zhang said, while “the West, exemplified by the United States, seems to be declining.”
The government's purchase of shares in American firms has also drawn parallels with the East, where the distinction between government and business is often blurred.
Recently, the US government announced it would become a shareholder in a new company focused on rare earth processing, after taking comparable shares in other companies it considers vital to the country's safety. These moves have left certain stakeholders nervous that America is entering a new era of government meddling in the private sector.
Yet, there remain significant distinctions between Trump’s America and China. In October, several news organisations including the Guardian declined to agree to a defense department rule that demanded reporting solely on approved news. US courts have blocked or reversed many of Trump’s actions, an action that is impossible in the nation's party-dominated judiciary.
An analyst, who established of Strategy Risks, specializing in China, commented: “America could descend into its gravest challenge of its history, far more severe than currently, and it will still be 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 yield to official requests regarding diversity and inclusion practices and open discourse on university grounds, in China, leading institutions are all state-owned by default. Administrators, who are selected by the government, “have no liberty refuse. They can’t afford to be disobedient.”
Still, Americans are starting to adopt measures that were once confined to repressive regimes. One professor at an American college who was previously vocal on bilateral matters refused to be interviewed for this article. He said: “The truth is, I am scared of suppression in the US: I actually feel less afraid to criticise Xi these days than say anything bad
