When Vickie Wang, an emerging comedic talent, steps onto her platform in New York, she is not just thinking about what humor to tell. Additionally, she carefully considers what subjects to avoid. “I don't engage in directly criticizing the administration,” she explained. Or if she does, she makes certain it's not recorded for online platforms. “I would never publicly share material in which I openly disparage authorities … I believe it's a learned behavior acquired back home.”
The comedian, thirty-nine, resided in Shanghai for almost a decade, leaving in that year. By 2025, she moved to the US. Upon arrival, she embarked on an intense period of “revenge bingeing on freedom,” going to talks, demonstrations, and delving into the city's public library.
But in the year since Donald Trump returned to office again, there's been a noticeable shift in the atmosphere, she notes. “In China, I understood where the line was, whereas here I find myself on shifting sands.”
Her fears mirror an emerging climate in America which numerous individuals from China, or those with experience in China, perceive as disturbingly similar. Opponents are ostracised. The president expects absolute loyalty. Reporters are targeted. Establishments are attacked.
The president has not been shy regarding his respect for Xi Jinping, China’s strongman leader. He's called him as a “great guy”. As they agreed a temporary truce in the trade war recently, the camaraderie between the two leaders of countries with vastly different political systems was evident. Following years of optimism in America that closer ties with China could assist the rising power to liberalise, under Trump 2.0, it appears as if the US 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 Peking University. “The president, Trump, is trying to mobilise the grassroots in order to marginalize or weaken established figures … similar to events in China half a century ago.”
Ever since Trump unleashed what's termed Department for Government Efficiency, or the agency, on the Washington bureaucracy early on of his term, many in China see American governance via the perspective of the Cultural Revolution. Be it the mobilisation of the youth to execute presidential directives, or cleansing organizations of perceived enemies, Trump from a Chinese viewpoint has brought Mao-style chaos to America, albeit absent the same levels of violence.
But since the upheaval of the initial period of the new administration subsided, an unfamiliar, distinct type of climate has emerged in the US, which in different ways also feels familiar to many Chinese people.
‘The Lighthouse Has Become Dimmer’
The most profound similarity between the US today and the East is the suppression on open expression.
A former police officer, now a CCP critic, ended up in the eye of a storm this year, similar to what he once faced in his homeland. He has lived in America since 2019, after escaping China due to harassment from officials.
Last fall, following the passing of a public figure, Deng tweeted that Kirk was “despicable”. Like people across the US – many of whom lost their jobs as a result of expressing criticism about Kirk – he encountered significant backlash. Relatives had personal info leaked and he faced allegations of being a Chinese spy seeking to divide the US.
“This incident surprised me deeply. I never imagined such a thing could happen in the United States – what should only happen in a repressive state,” Deng said.
His backlash originated from fellow social media users, instead of the state, but that kind of social surveillance bears similarities with China.
“Regarding going after those who disagree and monitoring public speech on topics deemed controversial … That’s starting to emerge here,” said an academic, an associate professor at Georgia State University. “That’s something that you see in the East today as well,” she added, adding that concerns are rising in the US of pupils informing against educators, a type of surveillance promoted by Chinese authorities.
Zhang, the Peking University law professor, said that progressive thinkers like himself used to look to the US for ideals, since public debate on internal affairs in China is dangerous. However, “The US isn't some kind of god for Chinese liberals. America’s image has declined across the board.”
“We once viewed America as the beacon of democratic governance, but since the new administration, that guide appears dimmer”.
Progressive Chinese, who are often, behind closed doors, critical of the nation's governance, now perceive it less objectionable than the US's, Zhang said. “It’s sort of difficult to acknowledge this reality … but post-COVID, the government appears to be pursuing correct policies in environmental protection and promoting EVs and investing in hi-tech,” Zhang said, while “the West, exemplified by America, appear in decline.”
The Trump administration’s purchase of shares in American firms has also drawn comparisons with China, where the line between government and business is frequently unclear.
On Monday, the US government announced it would become a shareholder in a new company specialising in mineral refinement, following similar stakes in other companies deemed vital to national security. The deals have made some investors concerned that America is embarking on a new era of government meddling in private industry.
There are still significant distinctions between Trump’s America and China. In October, several news organisations among others refused to sign to a defense department rule that required reporting solely on government-authorised information. American judiciary have halted or overturned many of Trump’s actions, something that is unthinkable in China’s party-dominated legal system.
An analyst, the founder of Strategy Risks, a China-focused advisory firm, said: “America might face the worst crisis of all time, orders of magnitudes worse than it is now, and it would remain more free, open, and liberal than the East under its leader.”
Zhang observes that while numerous scholars in China were surprised to see US universities yield to official requests regarding diversity and inclusion practices and open discourse on campus, in the East, the top universities are all state-owned by default. University leaders, which are appointed by the state, “have no liberty of saying no. They can’t afford to be disobedient.”
Still, Americans are starting to adopt measures previously confined to more authoritarian countries. An academic at a US university who was previously outspoken on bilateral matters declined to speak for this piece. He stated: “The truth is, I fear of suppression in the US: I genuinely feel less afraid to criticise Xi now than say anything bad
