When Vickie Wang, a rising comedic talent, takes her platform in New York, she is not only considering which jokes to tell. She also carefully considers which topics to steer clear of. “I don't engage in directly criticizing the administration,” she explained. And when she does, she makes certain it isn't captured for social media. “I would never publish openly content where I openly disparage authorities … I believe it's a habit from China.”
Wang, thirty-nine, lived in Shanghai for almost ten years, departing in 2022. By 2025, she relocated to the US. When she got there, she embarked on a frenzy of “revenge bingeing on democracy,” going to lectures, protests, and exploring the city's library system.
However in the year since the president was elected again, there has been a noticeable shift in the atmosphere, she notes. “Back home, I knew where the line was, whereas in the US I'm standing on shifting sands.”
Wang’s concerns reflect an emerging political reality in the US which many Chinese, or people with experience in the country, find disturbingly similar. Enemies are ostracised. The president expects absolute loyalty. Journalists are targeted. Establishments come under fire.
Trump has not been shy about his admiration for China's leader, the nation's strongman leader. He's called Xi as a “great guy”. When they reached a temporary truce in economic tensions recently, the camaraderie between both figures of nations with vastly different governance models became clear. And after decades of optimism in America that closer ties with the East could assist the growing nation become more open, in the current administration, it appears that the US is shifting in China's path, rather than the other way around.
“America is experiencing a period of societal upheaval,” said a constitutional law expert, a professor at a top Chinese university. “The top leader, Donald Trump, is trying to mobilise the masses to marginalize or undermine established figures … reminiscent of events in China half a century ago.”
Ever since the administration unleashed the so-called Department for Government Efficiency, or Doge, on the Washington bureaucracy early on in office, many in China see American governance via the perspective of China's historical period. Whether it is the rallying of the youth to execute presidential directives, or purging institutions of those deemed opposition, Trump from a Chinese viewpoint has brought disorder reminiscent of Mao to America, albeit absent the same levels of force.
However since the turmoil of the initial period under Trump has calmed, a new, distinct type of political atmosphere has settled in the country, which variously seems recognizable to many Chinese individuals.
‘The Lighthouse Has Become Less Bright’
The most profound parallel between the US today and the East is the suppression on open expression.
A former police officer, turned CCP dissenter, ended up in the eye of a storm recently, similar to what he once faced in his homeland. He has lived in America for several years, having fled China because of pressure from officials.
In September, after the death of Charlie Kirk, he posted that Kirk was a “scumbag”. Similar to others across the US – many of whom were fired as a result of making negative comments regarding him – Deng faced significant backlash. Relatives 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 that something like this could happen in America – something that typically happens in an authoritarian country,” Deng said.
His pile on came from online peers, rather than the state, but that kind of social surveillance bears similarities with the East.
“In terms of targeting those who disagree and starting to surveil open discourse about issues that are sensitive … It's appearing here,” said an academic, an associate professor at a US university. “This is observed in the East now as too,” she added, stating that there were now fears in America of pupils informing against educators, a form of surveillance promoted by the CCP.
Zhang, the legal expert, explained that liberal Chinese intellectuals such as him used to look to America for ideals, since openly discussing internal affairs in China is dangerous. However, “America isn't a ideal for progressive Chinese. The US's reputation has declined across the board.”
“We used to see the US as the beacon of democratic governance, but since the new administration, that guide seems to have become dimmer”.
Progressive Chinese, who are often, behind closed doors, critical of China’s political system, now perceive it less objectionable than the US's, he stated. “It’s sort of difficult to acknowledge this … but post-COVID, authorities seems to be doing the right thing in improving the environment and developing electric cars and tech investment,” Zhang said, while “the West, as represented by the United States, seems to be declining.”
The Trump administration’s purchase of shares in American firms has prompted parallels with China, where the distinction between state and private industry is frequently unclear.
Recently, the US government stated it would become an investor in a startup specialising in rare earth processing, following similar stakes in other companies deemed vital to national security. These moves have made some investors concerned that America is embarking on a fresh phase of state intervention in private industry.
There are still significant distinctions between the US under Trump and the East. In October, multiple media outlets including the Guardian declined to agree to a Pentagon policy that required reporting solely on government-authorised news. American judiciary have halted or overturned many of presidential measures, an action that would be unthinkable in the nation's CCP-controlled judiciary.
Isaac Stone Fish, the founder of Strategy Risks, specializing in China, said: “America could descend into the worst crisis of its history, far more severe than it is now, and it will still be more free, more open, and liberal than the East under its leader.”
Zhang notes that although many intellectuals in the country were shocked to see US universities capitulate to government demands concerning diversity and inclusion practices and free speech on campus, in China, the top universities are publicly controlled inherently. University leaders, who are appointed by the state, “have no liberty refuse. They dare not to be disobedient.”
Nevertheless, Americans are starting to take precautions previously confined to more authoritarian countries. An academic at an American college once vocal on US-China issues refused to be interviewed for this article. He said: “The truth is, I fear of the censorship in the US: I genuinely feel less afraid criticizing China's leader now than say anything bad
