When the standup comedian, a rising comedic talent, takes the stage in the Big Apple, she's not only considering what humor to tell. She also carefully considers what subjects to steer clear of. “I don't engage in directly attacking the administration,” she explained. Or if she does, she makes certain it isn't recorded for social media. “I'd never publish openly material in which I directly criticize authorities … I think this is a habit from China.”
Wang, 39, lived in the Chinese metropolis for nearly ten years, leaving in 2022. In 2025, she moved to the US. When she got there, she embarked on an intense period of “revenge bingeing on freedom,” attending lectures, protests, and exploring New York’s library system.
However in the year since Donald Trump was elected for the second time, there's been a noticeable shift in the atmosphere, she says. “In China, I understood the boundaries, while in the US I'm standing on unstable ground.”
Wang’s concerns reflect a new political reality in America which many Chinese, or people with experience in the country, perceive as disturbingly similar. Opponents face exclusion. The president demands absolute loyalty. Reporters face scrutiny. Institutions are attacked.
Trump has openly expressed regarding his respect for Xi Jinping, China’s authoritarian figure. He's called Xi as a “great guy”. As they agreed a temporary truce in the trade war on Thursday, the camaraderie between the two leaders of nations with vastly different political systems was evident. Following years of optimism in America that improved relations with the East could assist the rising power become more open, in the current administration, it seems that America is shifting in the Chinese direction, instead of vice versa.
“The United States is experiencing an era of cultural revolution,” stated a constitutional law expert, an academic at a top Chinese university. “The president, Donald Trump, is trying to mobilise the masses to marginalize or undermine established figures … reminiscent of what happened in the country half a century ago.”
Ever since the administration unleashed what's termed a government streamlining body, or Doge, on federal institutions at the start of his term, many in China have viewed American governance via the perspective of the Cultural Revolution. Whether it is the rallying of the youth to carry out presidential directives, or purging institutions of those deemed opposition, Trump from a Chinese viewpoint has brought Mao-style chaos to the US, albeit without equivalent degrees of force.
However since the turmoil of the early months under Trump subsided, an unfamiliar, distinct type of climate has emerged in the country, which variously also feels familiar to numerous Chinese individuals.
‘The Lighthouse Is Dimmer’
The most profound parallel between Trump’s America and China is the suppression on free speech.
Deng Haiyan, now a CCP critic, found himself in a controversy recently, similar to what he once faced in his homeland. He resided in the US since 2019, after escaping China due to pressure from the authorities.
Last fall, following the passing of Charlie Kirk, Deng tweeted that the individual was a “scumbag”. Similar to others 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 seeking to create division.
“This incident surprised me deeply. I hadn't thought such a thing could happen in the United States – something that should only happen in an authoritarian country,” he commented.
Deng’s pile on originated from fellow social media users, instead of the government, but that kind of social surveillance also has similarities with China.
“In terms of going after those who disagree and monitoring public speech on topics deemed controversial … That’s starting to emerge in the US,” noted an academic, a scholar at Georgia State University. “That’s something observed in the East today as well,” she said, stating that concerns are rising in the US of students reporting on teachers, a type of monitoring that has been encouraged by Chinese authorities.
Zhang, the legal expert, explained that progressive thinkers such as him once turned to the US for ideals, since openly discussing internal affairs in the country is dangerous. But now, “America isn't some kind of god for Chinese liberals. America’s image has declined generally.”
“We once viewed the US as the symbol of constitutional democracy, but after Trump took power, that guide seems to have become less luminous”.
Chinese liberals, who are often, at least in private, critical of China’s political system, now perceive it less objectionable than the US's, he stated. “It's somewhat difficult to acknowledge this … but post-COVID, the government seems to be doing correct policies in environmental protection and developing electric cars and investing in hi-tech,” he noted, while “Western nations, as represented by America, appear declining.”
The government's purchase of shares in US companies has prompted parallels with the East, where the distinction between state and private industry is frequently unclear.
Recently, authorities announced it will take a shareholder in a new company focused on mineral refinement, after taking similar stakes in additional firms it considers vital to national security. The deals have left certain stakeholders concerned that the US is embarking on a fresh phase of government meddling in the private sector.
Yet, there remain major differences between Trump’s America and China. In October, several news organisations including the Guardian refused to sign to a Pentagon policy that demanded reporting solely on approved information. American judiciary have blocked or overturned many of Trump’s actions, something that would be unthinkable in China’s CCP-controlled judiciary.
An analyst, the founder of a consulting firm, a China-focused advisory firm, said: “America could descend into the worst crisis of its history, far more severe than it is now, and it would remain freer, more open, and liberal than China under Xi.”
The professor observes that while many intellectuals in the country were surprised to see US universities capitulate to government demands regarding DEI policies and free speech on campus, in China, the top universities are all state-owned by default. University leaders, which are appointed by the government, “cannot of saying no. They can’t afford to be disobedient.”
Still, Americans are beginning to adopt measures that were once associated with more authoritarian countries. An academic at a US university once vocal on bilateral matters refused to speak for this piece. He said: “The truth is, I am scared of the censorship here: I genuinely feel more comfortable to criticise Xi these days than say anything bad
