As the standup comedian, a rising performer, steps onto her platform in the Big Apple, she is not just thinking about which jokes to deliver. She also weighs what subjects to avoid. “I refrain from openly criticizing the administration,” she stated. Or if she does, she ensures it isn't recorded for online platforms. “I'd never publicly share material where I openly disparage the government … I think it's a habit from China.”
The comedian, 39, lived in the Chinese metropolis for nearly ten years, leaving in that year. By 2025, she relocated to America. Upon arrival, she embarked on an intense period of “revenge bingeing on democracy,” going to talks, demonstrations, and exploring the city's public library.
However in the year after the president returned to office again, there has been a “palpable change” in the environment, she notes. “Back home, I knew where the line was, whereas in the US I find myself on shifting sands.”
Wang’s fears mirror a new political reality in the US which many Chinese, or those who have lived in the country, perceive as disturbingly familiar. Opponents are ostracised. The president expects total allegiance. Journalists face scrutiny. Institutions are attacked.
The president has openly expressed regarding his respect for Xi Jinping, the nation's strongman leader. He's called him as “fantastic”. As they agreed a temporary truce 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 improved relations with the East may help the growing nation to liberalise, under Trump 2.0, it seems as if America is being pulled in the Chinese direction, rather than the other way around.
“America is undergoing an era of cultural revolution,” stated Zhang Qianfan, an academic at Peking University. “The top leader, Trump, is attempting to mobilise the grassroots in order to marginalize or undermine the elite … reminiscent of events in the country decades past.”
Since the administration unleashed what's termed a government streamlining body, or Doge, on the Washington bureaucracy at the start in office, many in China have viewed American governance via the perspective of the Cultural Revolution. Whether it is the mobilisation of young people to execute the leader’s will, or purging organizations of those deemed opposition, Trump as viewed from China has delivered disorder reminiscent of Mao to America, albeit absent the same levels of violence.
But after the turmoil of the initial period of the new administration has calmed, an unfamiliar, different kind of climate has emerged in the US, which in different ways also feels recognizable to numerous Chinese individuals.
‘The Lighthouse Is Dimmer’
The deepest parallel between Trump’s America and China is the suppression on open expression.
A former police officer, now a Chinese Communist party dissenter, ended up in the eye of a storm this year, similar to what he once faced in China. Deng has lived in the US for several years, having fled the country due to pressure from officials.
Last fall, following the passing of Charlie Kirk, Deng tweeted that the individual was a “scumbag”. Similar to others nationwide – who were fired as a result of making negative comments regarding him – Deng faced significant backlash. His family was doxed and he faced allegations of espionage seeking to create division.
“This incident was a real shock. I hadn't thought that something like this could happen in the United States – something that typically happens in a repressive state,” Deng said.
Deng’s pile on originated from fellow social media users, rather than the government, but such of public monitoring bears parallels with the East.
“Regarding going after those who disagree and monitoring open discourse about issues deemed controversial … That’s starting to emerge in the US,” said Maria Repnikova, a scholar at a US university. “That’s something that you see in China today as too,” she said, stating that concerns are rising in America of students reporting on educators, a form of surveillance that has been encouraged by Chinese authorities.
Zhang, the legal expert, said that liberal Chinese intellectuals like himself once turned to America for ideals, in part because public debate on domestic politics in the country is dangerous. But now, “America isn't some kind of god for Chinese liberals. America’s image has worsened generally.”
“We used to see America as the symbol of constitutional democracy, but since the new administration, this lighthouse appears dimmer”.
Progressive Chinese, who are often, behind closed doors, skeptical about China’s political system, are increasingly finding it more acceptable than the US's, Zhang said. “It’s sort of painful to accept this reality … but after the pandemic, the government appears to be pursuing correct policies in environmental protection and developing electric cars and investing in hi-tech,” he noted, while “Western nations, as represented by the United States, appear declining.”
The government's purchase of stakes in American firms has also drawn parallels with the East, where the line between government and business is often blurred.
Recently, authorities announced it would become an investor in a new company specialising in mineral refinement, following comparable shares in other companies deemed vital to national security. These moves have left some investors nervous 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 China. In October, several news organisations including the Guardian declined to agree to a defense department rule that demanded they only report on approved information. US courts have halted or reversed numerous presidential measures, something that would be impossible in China’s CCP-controlled legal system.
An analyst, the founder of Strategy Risks, specializing in China, commented: “The United States might face the worst crisis of its history, orders of magnitudes worse than it is now, and it would remain freer, more open, and more liberal than China under Xi.”
The professor notes that although numerous scholars in China were shocked to see American colleges capitulate to government demands concerning DEI policies and free speech on campus, in China, leading institutions are publicly controlled by default. Administrators, who are selected by the government, “have no liberty of saying no. They can’t afford defy orders.”
Still, Americans are starting to adopt measures previously confined to repressive regimes. One professor at a US university who was previously outspoken on bilateral matters refused to speak for this article. He stated: “The truth is, I fear of suppression here: I actually feel less afraid to criticise Xi now than say anything bad
