The America During the New Administration Feels Oddly Familiar to Those Watching from the East

As the standup comedian, an emerging comedic talent, steps onto the stage in New York, she is not only considering which jokes to tell. Additionally, she weighs what subjects to steer clear of. “I don't engage in openly criticizing the government,” 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 think it's a habit from China.”

Wang, 39, lived in Shanghai for nearly ten years, departing in 2022. By 2025, she relocated to the US. When she got there, she embarked on a frenzy of “overindulging on democracy,” going to lectures, demonstrations, and delving into the city's library system.

But over the past year since the president returned to office for the second time, there's been a “palpable change” in the atmosphere, she notes. “Back home, I understood where the line was, whereas here I find myself on shifting sands.”

Wang’s fears reflect an emerging climate in America which many Chinese, or those with experience in China, perceive as disturbingly similar. Enemies face exclusion. The president expects total allegiance. Journalists are targeted. Establishments are attacked.

Trump has openly expressed about his admiration for Xi Jinping, the nation's authoritarian figure. He's called Xi as “fantastic”. As they agreed a temporary truce in the trade war on Thursday, the camaraderie between the two leaders of countries with diametrically opposed governance models became clear. And after decades of hope in America that improved relations with the East could assist the growing nation to liberalise, in the current administration, it appears as if America is shifting in the Chinese direction, rather than vice versa.

“The United States is undergoing an era of cultural revolution,” stated Zhang Qianfan, an academic at Peking University. “The president, Donald Trump, is trying to rally the grassroots to sideline or undermine established figures … reminiscent of what happened in China half a century ago.”

Since Trump unleashed the so-called a government streamlining body, or the agency, on the Washington bureaucracy early on in office, many in China have viewed US politics via the perspective of China's historical period. Whether it is the mobilisation of the youth to carry out the leader’s will, or cleansing institutions of those deemed opposition, Trump as viewed from China has brought Mao-style chaos to America, albeit without equivalent degrees of violence.

However since the turmoil of the early months under Trump subsided, an unfamiliar, distinct type of political atmosphere has settled in the US, which in different ways seems recognizable to many Chinese individuals.

‘The Lighthouse Has Become Dimmer’

The most profound similarity between Trump’s America and the East is the crackdown on free speech.

Deng Haiyan, turned CCP dissenter, found himself in the eye of a storm this year, the likes of which he once faced in his homeland. He has lived in the US for several years, after escaping China because of harassment from the authorities.

In September, after the death of Charlie Kirk, Deng tweeted that Kirk was a “scumbag”. Like people nationwide – many of whom lost their jobs for making negative comments about Kirk – he encountered significant backlash. Relatives had personal info leaked and he was accused of being a Chinese spy seeking to divide the US.

“This incident was a real shock. I never imagined that something like this could happen in America – something that should only happen in a repressive state,” Deng said.

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

“In terms of going after those who disagree and monitoring public speech about issues that are sensitive … It's appearing here,” said Maria Repnikova, an associate professor at Georgia State University. “This is that you see in the East now as well,” she said, adding that concerns are rising in the US of pupils informing against teachers, a form of surveillance that has been encouraged by the CCP.

Zhang, the legal expert, explained that liberal Chinese intellectuals like himself once turned to America for ideals, in part because public debate on domestic politics in China is dangerous. But now, “America isn't a ideal for progressive Chinese. America’s image has declined generally.”

“We used to see America as the beacon of constitutional democracy, but since the new administration, this lighthouse seems to have become dimmer”.

Progressive Chinese, who are often, at least in private, skeptical about China’s political system, are increasingly finding it more acceptable than the US's, he stated. “It's somewhat painful to accept this … but post-COVID, authorities appears to be pursuing correct policies in environmental protection and developing electric cars and investing in hi-tech,” Zhang said, while “the West, exemplified by America, appear in decline.”

The Trump administration’s acquisition of stakes in American firms has prompted comparisons with China, where the distinction between government and private industry is frequently unclear.

On Monday, the US government stated it will take an investor in a new company specialising in mineral refinement, after taking similar stakes in additional firms it considers vital to national security. The deals have left some investors nervous that America is embarking on a fresh phase of government meddling in the private sector.

There are still significant distinctions between Trump’s America and China. In October, multiple media outlets among others refused to sign to a defense department rule that required reporting solely on approved news. US courts have blocked or reversed many of Trump’s actions, an action that is unthinkable in China’s CCP-controlled legal system.

An analyst, the founder of Strategy Risks, a China-focused advisory firm, commented: “The United States might face its gravest challenge of all time, orders of magnitudes worse than it is now, and it will still be freer, more open, and more liberal than China under Xi.”

Zhang observes that although numerous scholars in the country were shocked to see American colleges capitulate to official requests regarding DEI policies and open discourse on campus, in the East, the top universities are publicly controlled inherently. Administrators, who are selected by the state, “cannot refuse. They can’t afford to be disobedient.”

Still, Americans are starting to take precautions previously associated with repressive regimes. One professor at an American college once outspoken on US-China issues refused to speak for this piece. He said: “The truth is, I fear of suppression in the US: I genuinely feel less afraid to criticise Xi these days than say anything bad