The America Under the New Administration Feels Strangely Familiar to Those Watching from China

When Vickie Wang, a rising comedic talent, takes the stage in New York, she's not only thinking about which jokes to deliver. She also weighs which topics to avoid. “I refrain from directly criticizing the administration,” she stated. Or if she ventures there, she ensures it isn't captured for social media. “I would never publish openly material where I directly criticize authorities … I believe this is a habit from China.”

The comedian, thirty-nine, resided in the Chinese metropolis for almost ten years, leaving in that year. By 2025, she relocated to America. Upon arrival, she embarked on an intense period of “overindulging on democracy,” attending talks, demonstrations, and delving into the city's public library.

However over the past year after Donald Trump was elected for the second time, there has been a “palpable change” in the atmosphere, she notes. “Back home, I knew where the line was, whereas in the US I'm standing on unstable ground.”

Wang’s fears reflect a new political reality in the US which many Chinese, or people who have lived in China, perceive as disturbingly familiar. Opponents face exclusion. The leader demands absolute loyalty. Reporters are targeted. Institutions come under fire.

The president has openly expressed about his admiration for China's leader, China’s authoritarian figure. He's called him as a “great guy”. As they agreed a brief ceasefire in the trade war recently, the camaraderie between the two leaders of countries with diametrically opposed political systems was evident. Following years of hope in the US that improved relations with the East could assist the rising power become more open, under Trump 2.0, it seems that America is shifting in China's path, rather than vice versa.

“The United States is experiencing an era of cultural revolution,” stated Zhang Qianfan, a professor at Peking University. “The top leader, Trump, is attempting to rally the masses to marginalize or undermine the elite … reminiscent of events in the country decades past.”

Ever since Trump initiated what's termed a government streamlining body, or the agency, on the Washington bureaucracy at the start in office, many in China have viewed US politics through the lens of China's historical period. Be it the rallying of the youth to carry out the leader’s will, or purging institutions of perceived enemies, Trump as viewed from China has brought disorder reminiscent of Mao to the US, though without the same levels of force.

But since the upheaval of the early months under Trump has calmed, a new, different kind of climate has emerged in the US, which in different ways also feels recognizable to many Chinese people.

‘The Lighthouse Is Less Bright’

The most profound parallel between the US today and China is the suppression on open expression.

A former police officer, now a CCP critic, found himself in the eye of a storm this year, similar to what he’d only previously experienced in China. Deng resided in the US for several years, after escaping the country because of pressure from officials.

In September, after the death of a public figure, Deng tweeted that the individual was “despicable”. Similar to others nationwide – many of whom were fired for making negative comments regarding him – he encountered a huge backlash. His family was doxed and he faced allegations of espionage attempting to divide the US.

“That event was a real shock. I never imagined that something like this would occur in the United States – something that should only happen in a repressive state,” Deng said.

His backlash came from online peers, instead of the government, but that kind of public monitoring also has similarities with China.

“Regarding going after those who disagree and monitoring public speech on topics that are sensitive … That’s starting to emerge in the US,” noted an academic, an associate professor at a US university. “That’s something that you see in the East now as too,” she added, stating that concerns are rising in the US of pupils informing against teachers, a type of surveillance promoted by Chinese authorities.

Zhang, the Peking University law professor, said that liberal Chinese intellectuals like himself once turned to the US for ideals, since public debate on internal affairs in China is risky. However, “The US is no longer some kind of ideal for progressive Chinese. America’s image has worsened across the board.”

“We once viewed the US as the symbol of democratic governance, but after Trump took power, this lighthouse seems to have become dimmer”.

Chinese liberals, typically, behind closed doors, skeptical about the nation's governance, are increasingly finding it less objectionable than the US's, Zhang said. “It’s sort of painful to accept this reality … but after the pandemic, the government seems to be doing correct policies in improving the environment and developing electric cars and tech investment,” Zhang said, while “the West, exemplified by America, appear in decline.”

The government's purchase of stakes in American firms has prompted parallels with China, where the distinction between state and private industry is often blurred.

On Monday, authorities stated it will take an investor in a new company specialising in rare earth processing, following comparable shares in other companies it considers essential for the country's safety. The deals have left certain stakeholders concerned that America is entering a fresh phase of government meddling in the private sector.

There are still significant distinctions between Trump’s America and the East. Last month, multiple media outlets including the Guardian refused to sign to a Pentagon policy that demanded reporting solely on approved news. American judiciary have halted or overturned numerous presidential measures, an action that is unthinkable in China’s party-dominated legal system.

Isaac Stone Fish, who established of Strategy Risks, specializing in China, commented: “America might face the worst crisis of all time, orders of magnitudes worse than it is now, and it will still be freer, open, and more liberal than China under Xi.”

Zhang notes that although many intellectuals in China were shocked to see US universities capitulate to official requests concerning DEI policies and free speech on university grounds, in the East, leading institutions are all state-owned by default. University leaders, which are appointed by the government, “have no liberty refuse. They dare not to be disobedient.”

Nevertheless, Americans are starting to adopt measures that were once confined to repressive regimes. An academic at a US university who was previously vocal on bilateral matters declined to speak for this article. He said: “Honestly, I fear of the censorship in the US: I genuinely feel less afraid criticizing China's leader now than say anything bad