When the standup comedian, an emerging comedic talent, steps onto her platform in the Big Apple, she is not only considering which jokes to deliver. Additionally, she weighs what subjects to steer clear of. “I refrain from directly attacking the government,” she explained. And when she does, she ensures it isn't recorded for online platforms. “I would never publicly share content in which I directly criticize authorities … I think it's a learned behavior acquired back home.”
The comedian, thirty-nine, lived in the Chinese metropolis for almost a decade, leaving in 2022. By 2025, she moved to the US. Upon arrival, she embarked on an intense period of “overindulging on freedom,” attending lectures, protests, and delving into New York’s public library.
However in the year after Donald Trump returned to office again, there's 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 climate in the US which many Chinese, or those who have lived in the country, find disturbingly similar. Enemies face exclusion. The president demands absolute loyalty. Journalists are targeted. Establishments come under fire.
Trump has not been shy about his admiration for China's leader, China’s authoritarian figure. He's called him as “fantastic”. As they agreed a brief ceasefire in economic tensions recently, the bonhomie between the two leaders of countries with diametrically opposed political systems was evident. And after decades of hope in America that closer ties with the East could assist the growing nation become more open, in the current administration, it appears that America is being pulled in the Chinese direction, rather than vice versa.
“America is undergoing a period of societal upheaval,” stated Zhang Qianfan, a professor at a top Chinese university. “The president, Donald Trump, is attempting to mobilise the masses to marginalize or weaken established figures … similar to what happened in China half a century ago.”
Since the administration unleashed what's termed a government streamlining body, or the agency, on federal institutions early on of his term, many in China have viewed American governance through the lens of the Cultural Revolution. Be it the rallying of the youth to execute presidential directives, or purging institutions of perceived enemies, the president as viewed from China has brought disorder reminiscent of Mao to the US, though absent the same levels of force.
But after the upheaval of the initial period under Trump subsided, a new, distinct type of political atmosphere has settled in the US, which in different ways also feels recognizable to many Chinese people.
‘The Beacon Has Become Dimmer’
The deepest similarity between Trump’s America and the East is the suppression on free speech.
A former police officer, now a CCP critic, ended up in a controversy this year, similar to what he’d only previously experienced in China. Deng resided in America since 2019, after escaping China because of harassment from the authorities.
In September, following the passing of Charlie Kirk, Deng tweeted that the individual was “despicable”. Similar to others nationwide – who lost their jobs as a result of making negative comments about Kirk – he encountered a huge backlash. Relatives was doxed and he faced allegations of being a Chinese spy seeking to divide the US.
“This incident was a real shock. I never imagined such a thing could happen in the United States – something that typically happens in an authoritarian country,” Deng said.
Deng’s pile on came from fellow social media users, rather than the government, but that kind of social surveillance also has similarities with China.
“In terms of targeting dissenters and monitoring open discourse about issues deemed controversial … That’s starting to emerge here,” noted an academic, a scholar at a US university. “That’s something that you see in the East today as well,” she said, adding that there were now fears in America of pupils informing against educators, a form of surveillance that has been encouraged by the CCP.
The professor, 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 risky. But now, “The US is no longer some kind of ideal for progressive Chinese. America’s image has declined across the board.”
“We used to see America as the symbol of democratic governance, but after Trump took power, that guide appears less luminous”.
Progressive Chinese, who are often, at least in private, critical of China’s political system, now perceive it more acceptable than America’s, Zhang said. “It’s sort of painful to accept this reality … but post-COVID, the government seems to be doing the right thing in environmental protection and promoting EVs and tech investment,” Zhang said, while “the West, exemplified by America, appear declining.”
The government's acquisition of shares in American firms has prompted comparisons with China, where the line between government and private industry is frequently unclear.
On Monday, authorities announced it would become a shareholder in a startup focused on mineral refinement, following comparable shares in additional firms deemed vital to national security. The deals have made certain stakeholders concerned that the US is entering a fresh phase of government meddling in private industry.
There are still significant distinctions between the US under Trump and the East. Last month, multiple media outlets among others refused to sign to a defense department rule that demanded they only report on government-authorised information. US courts have blocked or reversed numerous Trump’s actions, an action that is unthinkable in China’s party-dominated judiciary.
Isaac Stone Fish, the founder of a consulting firm, a China-focused advisory firm, said: “America might face the worst crisis of all time, far more severe than currently, and it will still be more free, open, and more liberal than the East under its leader.”
Zhang observes that while many intellectuals in the country were surprised to see US universities capitulate to government demands concerning diversity and inclusion practices and free speech on university grounds, in the East, leading institutions are all state-owned inherently. Administrators, who are appointed by the state, “cannot of saying no. They can’t afford to be disobedient.”
Still, people in the US are beginning to adopt measures that were once associated with repressive regimes. An academic at an American college once vocal on US-China issues refused to speak for this piece. He said: “Honestly, I am scared of the censorship in the US: I genuinely feel more comfortable criticizing China's leader now than say anything bad
