When Vickie Wang, a rising comedic talent, takes the stage in New York, she is not just considering what humor to tell. Additionally, she weighs what subjects to steer clear of. “I refrain from openly attacking the administration,” she stated. Or if she does, she makes certain it isn't captured for online platforms. “I would never publicly share content where I directly criticize authorities … I think this is a habit from China.”
The comedian, 39, lived in the Chinese metropolis for nearly a decade, leaving in 2022. By 2025, she relocated to America. Upon arrival, she dove into a frenzy of “revenge bingeing on democracy,” attending talks, demonstrations, and delving into New York’s public library.
However in the year since the president was elected for the second time, there has been a noticeable shift in the environment, she says. “Back home, I understood the boundaries, whereas here I find myself on shifting sands.”
Wang’s concerns reflect an emerging political reality in the US which many Chinese, or those with experience in the country, perceive as disturbingly similar. Opponents are ostracised. The president demands total allegiance. Reporters are targeted. Institutions are attacked.
Trump has openly expressed regarding his respect for China's leader, the nation's strongman leader. He has described Xi as “fantastic”. As they agreed a brief ceasefire in the trade war recently, the bonhomie between the two leaders of countries with vastly different political systems was evident. And after decades of optimism in America that improved relations with the East may help the growing nation to liberalise, in the current administration, it appears that America is shifting in the Chinese direction, instead of the other way around.
“The United States is experiencing a period of societal upheaval,” stated Zhang Qianfan, an academic at a top Chinese university. “The president, Trump, is trying to rally the masses to sideline or undermine established figures … similar to events in the country half a century ago.”
Ever since Trump initiated what's termed Department for Government Efficiency, or the agency, on federal institutions at the start in office, many in China see American governance through the lens of China's historical period. Whether it is the rallying of the youth to carry out presidential directives, or cleansing institutions of those deemed opposition, Trump from a Chinese viewpoint has brought Mao-style chaos to the US, albeit without the same levels of violence.
But since the upheaval of the early months of the new administration has calmed, a new, different kind of political atmosphere has emerged in the US, which in different ways seems familiar to many Chinese individuals.
‘The Lighthouse Is Dimmer’
The deepest parallel between Trump’s America and the East is the crackdown on free speech.
Deng Haiyan, turned CCP dissenter, ended up in a controversy recently, the likes of which he once faced in his homeland. Deng resided in America for several years, having fled China because of pressure from the authorities.
In September, after the death of a public figure, he posted that the individual was a “scumbag”. Like people across the US – many of whom were fired for making negative comments about Kirk – Deng faced a huge backlash. Relatives was doxed and he was accused of being a Chinese spy attempting to create division.
“That event was a real shock. I never imagined that something like this would occur in America – what should only happen in an authoritarian country,” he commented.
Deng’s backlash came from online peers, rather than the government, but that kind of social surveillance also has similarities with the East.
“Regarding targeting those who disagree and monitoring public speech on topics deemed controversial … That’s starting to emerge here,” noted an academic, a scholar at Georgia State University. “This is observed in the East now as too,” she said, adding that concerns are rising in America of students reporting on teachers, a type of monitoring that has been encouraged by Chinese authorities.
The professor, the legal expert, explained that liberal Chinese intellectuals such as him once turned to America for ideals, since public debate on internal affairs in the country is risky. However, “America isn't some kind of ideal for Chinese liberals. The US's reputation has declined across the board.”
“We once viewed America as the beacon of democratic governance, but since the new administration, this lighthouse appears dimmer”.
Progressive Chinese, typically, behind closed doors, critical of China’s political system, are increasingly finding it less objectionable than America’s, he stated. “It’s sort of difficult to acknowledge this reality … but post-COVID, the government appears to be pursuing correct policies in improving the environment and promoting EVs and tech investment,” Zhang said, while “the West, exemplified by America, seems to be declining.”
The government's acquisition of stakes in American firms has prompted comparisons with the East, where the distinction between government and private industry is often blurred.
Recently, authorities announced it will take a shareholder in a new company focused on rare earth processing, following similar stakes in additional firms deemed vital to national security. These moves have made certain stakeholders nervous that America is entering a fresh phase of government meddling in private industry.
There are still significant distinctions between Trump’s America and the East. Last month, multiple media outlets among others refused to sign to a Pentagon policy that demanded they only report on government-authorised news. American judiciary have halted or reversed numerous Trump’s actions, an action that would be impossible in the nation's party-dominated judiciary.
Isaac Stone Fish, the founder of a consulting firm, specializing in China, said: “America could descend into its gravest challenge of its history, far more severe than it is now, and it would remain more free, more open, and more liberal than the East under its leader.”
Zhang observes that although numerous scholars in the country were shocked to see US universities yield to official requests concerning DEI policies and free speech on university grounds, in the East, leading institutions are all state-owned by default. University leaders, which are appointed by the government, “cannot refuse. They dare not defy orders.”
Nevertheless, Americans are starting to adopt measures that were once confined to more authoritarian countries. One professor at a US university who was previously vocal on US-China issues declined to speak for this piece. He stated: “The truth is, I am scared of suppression in the US: I genuinely feel less afraid criticizing China's leader these days than say anything bad
