As the standup comedian, an emerging comedic talent, steps onto her platform in the Big Apple, she is not only thinking about which jokes to deliver. Additionally, she carefully considers which topics to steer clear of. “I refrain from directly attacking the government,” she stated. And when she does, she ensures it's not captured for social media. “I'd never publish openly material where I directly criticize authorities … I believe this is a learned behavior acquired back home.”
The comedian, thirty-nine, lived in the Chinese metropolis for nearly ten years, leaving in that year. In 2025, she moved to the US. Upon arrival, she embarked on a frenzy of “overindulging on freedom,” attending lectures, protests, and exploring the city's public library.
However over the past year since Donald Trump was elected for the second time, there's been a noticeable shift in the environment, she notes. “Back home, I knew the boundaries, whereas in the US I'm standing on unstable ground.”
Wang’s fears mirror a new political reality in the US which numerous individuals from China, or those with experience in China, perceive as eerily familiar. Enemies face exclusion. The president demands absolute loyalty. Journalists are targeted. Institutions are attacked.
The president has not been shy about his admiration for China's leader, China’s strongman leader. He's called Xi as a “great guy”. As they agreed a brief ceasefire in economic tensions on Thursday, the bonhomie between both figures of countries with diametrically opposed governance models became clear. And after decades 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 being pulled in the Chinese direction, instead of the other way around.
“America is experiencing an era of societal upheaval,” stated Zhang Qianfan, an academic at Peking University. “The president, Donald Trump, is trying to mobilise the masses to sideline or undermine established figures … reminiscent of events in the country decades past.”
Since Trump unleashed the so-called a government streamlining body, or Doge, on federal institutions at the start of his term, numerous Chinese observers see American governance via the perspective of the Cultural Revolution. Be it the mobilisation of young people to carry out presidential directives, or purging institutions of perceived enemies, the president from a Chinese viewpoint has brought Mao-style chaos to America, albeit without the same levels of violence.
But since the upheaval of the early months under Trump has calmed, an unfamiliar, distinct type of climate has emerged in the US, which in different ways seems familiar to many Chinese people.
‘The Lighthouse Has Become Dimmer’
The deepest similarity between Trump’s America and China is the suppression on free speech.
Deng Haiyan, turned CCP critic, found himself in a controversy this year, similar to what he once faced in China. He has lived in the US since 2019, having fled the country due to harassment from the authorities.
In September, following the passing of Charlie Kirk, Deng tweeted that the individual was a “scumbag”. Similar to others nationwide – many of whom lost their jobs for making negative comments about Kirk – he encountered significant backlash. His family was doxed and he faced allegations of espionage attempting to divide the US.
“That event surprised me deeply. I never imagined that something like this could happen in the United States – what typically happens in an authoritarian country,” Deng said.
Deng’s backlash came from fellow social media users, rather than the state, but such of social surveillance also has parallels with the East.
“In terms of targeting dissenters and starting to surveil public speech about issues deemed controversial … That’s starting to emerge in the US,” said Maria Repnikova, a scholar at Georgia State University. “That’s something that you see in China now as too,” she added, adding that there were now fears in the US of students reporting on teachers, a type of surveillance that has been encouraged by the CCP.
Zhang, the Peking University law professor, said that liberal Chinese intellectuals like himself once turned to America for ideals, since public debate on internal affairs in China is risky. However, “The US isn't some kind of god for progressive Chinese. America’s image has declined generally.”
“We once viewed America as the beacon of constitutional democracy, but since the new administration, that guide seems to have become less luminous”.
Progressive Chinese, typically, at least in private, critical of the nation's governance, are increasingly finding it more acceptable than America’s, he stated. “It's somewhat painful to accept this … but post-COVID, the government seems to be doing correct policies in environmental protection and promoting EVs and investing in hi-tech,” Zhang said, while “Western nations, exemplified by the United States, appear in decline.”
The government's purchase of shares in American firms has prompted comparisons with China, where the line between state and private industry is often blurred.
On Monday, the US government announced it would become an investor in a startup focused on mineral refinement, following similar stakes in additional firms it considers essential for national security. The deals have left some investors concerned that the US is entering a fresh phase of government meddling in the private sector.
Yet, there remain significant distinctions between Trump’s America and China. Last month, several news organisations among others declined to agree to a Pentagon policy that demanded they only report on approved information. American judiciary have blocked or overturned numerous Trump’s actions, an action that would be unthinkable in the nation's CCP-controlled legal system.
An analyst, the founder of a consulting firm, a China-focused advisory firm, commented: “The United States could descend into the worst crisis of all time, far more severe than currently, and it would remain freer, more open, and more liberal than China under Xi.”
The professor notes that although many intellectuals in the country were surprised to see US universities yield to government demands concerning diversity and inclusion practices and open discourse on campus, in China, the top universities are all state-owned by default. University leaders, who are selected by the state, “have no liberty refuse. They dare not to be disobedient.”
Still, Americans are beginning to adopt measures previously associated with more authoritarian countries. One professor at an American college who was previously vocal on bilateral matters declined to be interviewed for this piece. He said: “The truth is, I fear of suppression in the US: I actually feel more comfortable criticizing China's leader now than say anything bad
