As the standup comedian, an emerging performer, steps onto her platform in New York, she is not just considering what humor to deliver. Additionally, she weighs what subjects to steer clear of. “I refrain from openly criticizing the government,” she stated. Or if she does, she ensures it's not captured for social media. “I'd never publicly share material where I directly criticize the government … I believe it's a habit from China.”
Wang, 39, lived in Shanghai for nearly a decade, leaving in 2022. In 2025, she relocated to the US. Upon arrival, she embarked on an intense period of “overindulging on freedom,” attending lectures, demonstrations, and exploring New York’s public library.
But in the year since Donald Trump was elected again, there's been a noticeable shift in the atmosphere, she notes. “In China, I knew the boundaries, whereas in the US I find myself on shifting sands.”
Her fears reflect a new climate in America which many Chinese, or those with experience in the country, perceive as disturbingly similar. Opponents face exclusion. The leader expects absolute loyalty. Journalists face scrutiny. Establishments come under fire.
Trump has openly expressed about his admiration for Xi Jinping, the nation's strongman leader. He has described Xi as a “great guy”. When they reached a temporary truce in economic tensions on Thursday, the camaraderie between the two leaders of nations with vastly different governance models was evident. And after decades of optimism in America that improved relations with China may help the rising power become more open, under Trump 2.0, it appears as if the US is being pulled in China's path, instead of the other way around.
“America is undergoing an era of societal upheaval,” stated a constitutional law expert, an academic at Peking University. “The president, Trump, is attempting to mobilise the masses to sideline or weaken the elite … similar to events in China half a century ago.”
Ever since the administration unleashed what's termed Department for Government Efficiency, or the agency, on the Washington bureaucracy early on in office, numerous Chinese observers see American governance through the lens of the Cultural Revolution. Whether it is the rallying of the youth to carry out presidential directives, or cleansing organizations of perceived enemies, Trump as viewed from China has delivered disorder reminiscent of Mao to the US, albeit without equivalent degrees of violence.
However since the upheaval of the initial period under Trump has calmed, an unfamiliar, distinct type of political atmosphere has settled in the country, which in different ways seems recognizable to many Chinese people.
‘The Beacon Has Become Less Bright’
The deepest similarity between the US today and China is the crackdown on open expression.
Deng Haiyan, turned CCP critic, ended up in a controversy this year, the likes of which he’d only previously experienced in his homeland. Deng resided in the US since 2019, having fled China due to pressure from officials.
Last fall, after the death of a public figure, Deng tweeted that Kirk was a “scumbag”. Similar to others across the US – who lost their jobs as a result of expressing criticism about Kirk – he encountered a huge backlash. Relatives had personal info leaked and he faced allegations of being a Chinese spy attempting to create division.
“That event was a real shock. I never imagined that something like this could happen in America – something that typically happens in a repressive state,” Deng said.
Deng’s backlash came from online peers, instead of the state, but such of social surveillance also has similarities with China.
“Regarding going after dissenters and starting to surveil public speech about issues that are sensitive … That’s starting to emerge here,” noted an academic, a scholar at a US university. “This is observed in the East now as too,” she said, adding that concerns are rising in America of pupils informing against educators, a type of surveillance promoted by the CCP.
Zhang, the legal expert, explained that progressive thinkers like himself once turned to the US for political inspiration, since openly discussing domestic politics in the country is risky. However, “The US isn't some kind of ideal for Chinese liberals. The US's reputation has declined generally.”
“We used to see the US as the beacon of democratic governance, but since the new administration, this lighthouse seems to have become less luminous”.
Progressive Chinese, who are often, behind closed doors, skeptical about China’s political system, are increasingly finding it less objectionable than America’s, he stated. “It's somewhat painful to accept this … but after the pandemic, the government appears to be pursuing the right thing in improving the environment and developing electric cars and tech investment,” Zhang said, while “Western nations, exemplified by the United States, seems to be in decline.”
The government's acquisition of shares in US companies has prompted comparisons with China, where the line between state and business is often blurred.
Recently, the US government stated it would become a shareholder in a new company focused on rare earth processing, following comparable shares in additional firms it considers vital to the country's safety. The deals have left some investors nervous that the US is embarking on a new era of government meddling in the private sector.
Yet, there remain significant distinctions between the US under Trump and China. In October, multiple media outlets including the Guardian refused to sign to a defense department rule that demanded reporting solely on approved information. American judiciary have halted or overturned numerous Trump’s actions, something that would be impossible in the nation's CCP-controlled judiciary.
Isaac Stone Fish, who established of a consulting firm, a China-focused advisory firm, said: “America might face its gravest challenge of its history, far more severe than it is now, and it will still be freer, open, and more liberal than China under Xi.”
The professor notes that while many intellectuals in China were shocked to see US universities capitulate to government demands regarding DEI policies and free speech on university grounds, in China, leading institutions are all state-owned inherently. University leaders, which are selected by the state, “cannot of saying no. They can’t afford to be disobedient.”
Nevertheless, Americans are starting to adopt measures previously confined to repressive regimes. One professor at a US university once outspoken on US-China issues refused to speak for this article. He stated: “Honestly, I am scared of suppression in the US: I genuinely feel more comfortable to criticise Xi now than say anything bad
