When Vickie Wang, a rising performer, takes her platform in New York, she's not only considering which jokes to tell. Additionally, she weighs what subjects to avoid. “I refrain from openly criticizing the administration,” she stated. Or if she does, she ensures it's not recorded for social media. “I would never publicly share material where I openly disparage the government … I believe it's a learned behavior acquired back home.”
The comedian, 39, resided in the Chinese metropolis for almost a decade, leaving in that year. In 2025, she moved to America. When she got there, she embarked on an intense period of “revenge bingeing on democracy,” attending lectures, protests, and delving into New York’s library system.
But in the year after the president was elected again, there has been a noticeable shift in the environment, she says. “Back home, I knew the boundaries, while in the US I'm standing on shifting sands.”
Her fears reflect an emerging climate in America which many Chinese, or those who have lived in China, find eerily familiar. Opponents face exclusion. The president demands absolute loyalty. Journalists are targeted. Establishments come under fire.
Trump has openly expressed about his admiration for Xi Jinping, China’s strongman leader. He's called him as a “great guy”. When they reached a brief ceasefire in economic tensions on Thursday, the bonhomie between both figures of countries with vastly different governance models 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 seems as if America is shifting in the Chinese direction, rather than vice versa.
“America is experiencing an era of cultural revolution,” said Zhang Qianfan, an academic at Peking University. “The president, Trump, is attempting to mobilise the grassroots to marginalize or undermine the elite … similar to events in China half a century ago.”
Since Trump unleashed the so-called a government streamlining body, or Doge, on the Washington bureaucracy early on of his term, numerous Chinese observers have viewed US politics via the perspective of China's historical period. Whether it is the rallying of the youth to carry out presidential directives, or cleansing organizations of perceived enemies, the president as viewed from China has brought Mao-style chaos to the US, albeit without equivalent degrees of force.
But since the upheaval of the early months under Trump has calmed, an unfamiliar, distinct type of climate has emerged in the US, which variously seems recognizable to numerous Chinese individuals.
‘The Lighthouse Has Become Less Bright’
The deepest parallel between Trump’s America and the East is the crackdown on open expression.
A former police officer, now a CCP dissenter, ended up in the eye of a storm recently, similar to what he once faced in China. He resided in America since 2019, having fled the country due to pressure from officials.
In September, following the passing of Charlie Kirk, Deng tweeted that the individual was a “scumbag”. Similar to others nationwide – who were fired for making negative comments regarding him – he encountered significant backlash. His family had personal info leaked and he faced allegations of espionage attempting to divide the US.
“This incident was a real shock. I hadn't thought that something like this would occur in the United States – something that should only happen in a repressive state,” Deng said.
Deng’s backlash came from online peers, instead of the state, but that kind of public monitoring also has similarities with the East.
“In terms of targeting those who disagree and monitoring public speech about issues that are sensitive … That’s starting to emerge in the US,” noted an academic, a scholar at a US university. “That’s something observed in the East today as too,” she said, stating that there were now fears in the US of students reporting on educators, a form of monitoring that has been encouraged by the CCP.
Zhang, the legal expert, explained that liberal Chinese intellectuals such as him used to look to America for ideals, in part because openly discussing domestic politics in the country is dangerous. However, “America isn't a ideal for Chinese liberals. The US's reputation has declined across the board.”
“We used to see America as the beacon of democratic governance, but after Trump took power, that guide appears dimmer”.
Chinese liberals, typically, behind closed doors, critical of the nation's governance, now perceive it more acceptable than America’s, he stated. “It's somewhat painful to accept this reality … but post-COVID, authorities seems to be doing the right thing in improving the environment and developing electric cars and investing in hi-tech,” he noted, while “the West, as represented by the United States, seems to be in decline.”
The Trump administration’s acquisition of shares in US companies has also drawn comparisons with the East, where the line between government and private industry is often blurred.
On Monday, the US government stated it will take a shareholder in a startup specialising in mineral refinement, after taking comparable shares in other companies deemed essential for national security. The deals have made certain stakeholders nervous that America is entering a new era of state intervention in private industry.
Yet, there remain major differences between the US under Trump and China. Last month, multiple media outlets among others refused to sign to a defense department rule that demanded reporting solely on approved news. American judiciary have blocked or reversed many of presidential measures, something that is impossible in China’s party-dominated judiciary.
An analyst, who established of Strategy Risks, a China-focused advisory firm, said: “America might face the worst crisis of its history, far more severe than currently, and it will still be more free, more open, and liberal than China under Xi.”
The professor notes that although many intellectuals in the country were shocked to see American colleges capitulate to government demands regarding DEI policies and open discourse on campus, in China, the top universities are publicly controlled inherently. Administrators, who are selected by the state, “have no liberty refuse. They dare not to be disobedient.”
Still, Americans are starting to take precautions previously confined to repressive regimes. An academic at a US university who was previously vocal on bilateral matters refused to be interviewed for this article. He said: “Honestly, I am scared of the censorship in the US: I genuinely feel less afraid criticizing China's leader now than say anything bad
