As Vickie Wang, a rising comedic talent, takes the stage in the Big Apple, she is not only considering what humor to deliver. She also carefully considers what subjects to steer clear of. “I refrain from directly attacking the government,” she explained. And when she does, she ensures it isn't recorded for social media. “I would never publicly share material where I directly criticize authorities … I think it's a habit acquired back home.”
The comedian, 39, lived in Shanghai for nearly a decade, departing in that year. In 2025, she relocated to the US. When she got there, she embarked on an intense period of “overindulging on democracy,” attending talks, protests, and delving into the city's public library.
But over the past year since the president returned to office again, there's been a “palpable change” in the atmosphere, she notes. “In China, I understood where the line was, while in the US I find myself on shifting sands.”
Wang’s concerns reflect an emerging political reality in the US which many Chinese, or people who have lived in China, find disturbingly familiar. Opponents face exclusion. The president demands absolute loyalty. Journalists face scrutiny. Institutions are attacked.
Trump has openly expressed regarding his respect for Xi Jinping, China’s authoritarian figure. He's called Xi as “fantastic”. When they reached a brief ceasefire in economic tensions on Thursday, the bonhomie between the two leaders of countries with diametrically opposed governance models was evident. And after decades of optimism in America that closer ties with China could assist the growing nation to liberalise, under Trump 2.0, it appears that America is being pulled in the Chinese direction, rather than vice versa.
“America is experiencing an era of societal upheaval,” stated a constitutional law expert, a professor at a top Chinese university. “The top leader, Trump, is attempting to rally the masses to sideline or weaken established figures … similar to what happened in China decades past.”
Ever since Trump initiated what's termed Department for Government Efficiency, or the agency, on federal institutions at the start in office, numerous Chinese observers have viewed US politics through the lens of the Cultural Revolution. Be it the mobilisation of young people to carry out the leader’s will, or cleansing institutions of those deemed opposition, Trump as viewed from China has brought disorder reminiscent of Mao to the US, albeit absent equivalent degrees of force.
But since the upheaval of the early months under Trump subsided, a new, distinct type of political atmosphere has settled in the US, which in different ways seems recognizable to numerous Chinese people.
‘The Beacon Is Less Bright’
The deepest similarity between Trump’s America and China is the suppression on open expression.
Deng Haiyan, now a CCP critic, found himself in a controversy this year, similar to what he once faced in his homeland. He has lived in America since 2019, after escaping China due to pressure from officials.
Last fall, following the passing of a public figure, Deng tweeted that the individual was “despicable”. Similar to others across the US – many of whom lost their jobs as a result of making negative comments about Kirk – Deng faced significant backlash. His family was doxed and he was accused of being a Chinese spy attempting to create division.
“This incident was a real shock. I hadn't thought such a thing could happen in the United States – something that typically happens in a repressive state,” Deng said.
Deng’s backlash originated from fellow social media users, rather than the government, but that kind of public monitoring also has similarities with the East.
“In terms of going after 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 Georgia State University. “That’s something observed in China today as too,” she added, stating that concerns are rising in the US of pupils informing against educators, a type of surveillance promoted by Chinese authorities.
The professor, the Peking University law professor, said that liberal Chinese intellectuals such as him once turned to America for political inspiration, in part because openly discussing domestic politics in the country is risky. But now, “The US isn't a ideal for progressive Chinese. The US's reputation has worsened across the board.”
“We once viewed the US as the symbol of constitutional democracy, but since the new administration, this lighthouse seems to have become dimmer”.
Chinese liberals, typically, behind closed doors, skeptical about the nation's governance, now perceive it less objectionable than America’s, he stated. “It's somewhat painful to accept this … but post-COVID, authorities seems to be doing correct policies in environmental protection and promoting EVs and investing in hi-tech,” he noted, while “Western nations, exemplified by America, appear declining.”
The Trump administration’s purchase of stakes in American firms has prompted parallels with the East, where the distinction between government and private industry is often blurred.
Recently, authorities stated it will take a shareholder in a new company specialising in mineral refinement, following similar stakes in other companies it considers essential for national security. The deals have made certain stakeholders concerned that America is entering a new era of state intervention in private industry.
Yet, there remain significant distinctions between the US under Trump and China. In October, several news organisations including the Guardian declined to agree to a defense department rule that demanded reporting solely on government-authorised information. US courts have halted or reversed many of presidential measures, something that is unthinkable in China’s CCP-controlled legal system.
Isaac Stone Fish, who established of Strategy Risks, a China-focused advisory firm, said: “America could descend into its gravest challenge of all time, far more severe than currently, and it will still be freer, more open, and liberal than China under Xi.”
The professor notes that although many intellectuals in the country were surprised to see US universities capitulate to official requests regarding DEI policies and open discourse on university grounds, in the East, leading institutions are publicly controlled by default. University leaders, who are appointed by the government, “have no liberty of saying no. They dare not defy orders.”
Still, people in the US are starting to adopt measures that were once confined to repressive regimes. An academic at a US university who was previously vocal on US-China issues declined to be interviewed for this piece. He stated: “Honestly, I am scared of suppression in the US: I genuinely feel less afraid to criticise Xi these days than say anything bad
